Bad Prophecy
by SafireBlade
Summary: AU between Season 4 and 5: The fates have always been cruel to Buffy but now they seemed to be openly mocking her. Her father strolls back into her life along side his new girlfriend as an ancient prophecy changes her life forever.
1. Fathers and Fangs

Chapter Notes:

Disclaimer: BTVS and all likeness shown in this story is the property of Joss Whedon. I don't own anything.

Father and Fangs

Chapter One

The smell of summer was still fresh, not yet worn away by the thunderstorms and changing leaves. Buffy Summers had always liked summer. There was no school, she could stay out as late as she liked. There was even a respite from the beasts that clustered around the Hellmouth. Her nights in the summer were mostly peaceful and lazy, tonight being the exception: her father was coming to visit her. Truthfully, she had not seen Hank Summers since her freshman year of high school, and now… Well, now she was dutifully awaiting her father at The Bistro.

The Bistro was the fanciest place in Sunnydale, not like that was a hard thing to accomplish. Most places were plagued by random demon related attacks. The Bistro had been spared by the demon population, only by the fact that the owner had paid for protection by an organized vampire mob. The Slayer had allowed this action because the mob agreed to not kill their prey and to glamour the memory from them. It was one of the concessions that the Slayer had been making since the Adam problem. There was just not enough time to kill every supernatural gang in Sunnydale, and, sometimes, it was just best to cut a deal with the leader of whatever supernatural force was the least harmful than fight them all. It was all part of her new plan to keep herself alive as long as possible. Buffy often debated about telling Giles of her new game plan, but had decided against it. The watchers weren't much for grey areas in regards to the supernatural world, and she doubted that Giles' watchers training would allow him to understand her plan.

The thought made her tired so she waved over the bartender. "Shot of vodka." Buffy ordered, letting her deep, creeping anxiety wash over her for a second.

The not entirely human bartender makes his way over recognizing the Slayer. Determined not to be on the slay list, he pulls a fat bottle of Absolute vodka coupled with a tiny shot glass. "Course anything, for the Slayer." The Bartender poured, doing his best to be charming.

Buffy picked up the shot, sucked it down with all the practice of a nineteen year old college student. She leaned into the bar waiting for the wave of happy that accompanied the not so pleasant burn of vodka. Yet it never came, instead thoughts of her father swam through her head making her throat dry. The Slayer almost waved the Bartender for another, when a high pitch squeal sounded from behind her.

The barely human squeal jolted Buffy upright and facing a woman with chocolate eyes, "Oh. My. God. Buffy! Is that really you? Me and the girls I thought you died or something?"

In a confused moment of staring at a cheerful girl Buffy had forgotten, she smiled, "Yeah...it's been ages." Buffy picked through memories of the shallow girls that she use to know. Oh my God who is this person? Was it Jessie? No, she had long straight blondish hair not frizzy messy coffee color hair. Ok, she looks familiar, I know she used to hang out with my group but I don't think we were friends per se. Was it that fat chick Rachel? I mean it could be and she just lost a lot of weight. No, Rachel would not be happy to see me. God I was a horrible person. Don't go down that road. Focus. But I know her. Actually, I think I hated her. Yes now I remember her, Hand Job Hannah. Yes, trashy red lip stick, brainless brown eyes, skimpy red cocktail dress, and too big to be real breast; it was Hannah.

Hannah crawled on to a bar stool beside Buffy. The clueless girl rambled on about her engagement and how they're moving here from Los Angeles because they worry about the city's influence on their future children. It was all Buffy could do not to laugh. Instead she scanned the room looking for her father and trying to find a way to politely escape. Hannah explained, "So we're going to have a bunch of kids."

Before Hannah could go into more detail about her children she was planning; Buffy noticed Spike saunter into the bistro. For a second Buffy stared at the vampire in disbelief. It seemed Spike traded in his duster and black boots for upscale formal wear, shifting the punk rock villain into a strange, almost comical, mix of Gatsby and Kurt Cobain. The bezoar combination landed a ghost of smile on Buffy's face, prompting her to do what she would normally never think of. "I have to go my date is waiting for me." Spike was better than nothing, ready for mischief. She sped off in Spike's direction. She kissed him on the cheek, "Honey you're late."

Spike wrinkled his brow in puzzlement at Buffy's strange behavior. "What the bleedin hell Slayer?"

Buffy could feel the brown eyes of Hannah Hand-job on her, so she grabbed Spike whispering low enough so only he could hear, "Pretend to be my date."

For a second all Spike could do was look at Buffy like she grew a second head. Carefully his steely blue eyes studied her for any sign of trouble in her soft jade eyes. He could have sworn that she flushed a little under his gaze but she merely shifted uncomfortably in her tall black heels made to match the little flirty black coktale dress. The dress hugged her subtle curves making her more elegant. Frustrated by Buffy's nearness, Spike huffed out a refusal. "I'm not goanna pretend to be your date just because Capt. Cardboard stood you up." Buffy's eyes narrowed with outrage, her hands planted on her hips as Spike hissed, "Now shove off." At seeing the flustered Slayer, he had nearly forgotten about his own date, Sarah. Desperately trying to break away from his Slayer before his date showed up. Spike had no matter of luck as a willowy girl in a white sundress glided into the bistro. Her flowing dark hair and ghostly skin reminded Buffy of a living version of Drusilla. A pang of jealousy hit the Slayer as she realized that Spike was on a date.

Buffy had a sinister smile and put on her sad puppy dog eyes, "What are you talking about honey? We have been dating for two years and….." her hazel eyes welling up with tears. "You're cheating on me? I thought we had more than that?" Buffy inwardly laughed and thought to herself, and the Oscar goes to Buffy Summers. The Slayer watched as Spike turns back into his punk rock villain self as he glares daggers at her. Buffy hiding her amusement put her puppy dog eyes on full blast.

Dru 2.0, Sara, looked horrified at the pair, "Oh God I didn't know. I am so sorry." Sara stormed off. Buffy wiped away her eyes giving the biggest smile to Spike.

Boiling rage filled Spike, "You crazy bint! Why did you do that?" He calculated whether or not the shock of the chip would be worth the second it would take to rip out the Slayer's throat.

Buffy's eyes seem to sparkle with wicked joy as her voice dripped with condescension, "Oh don't be upset. I was simply trying to help you from an unhealthy behavior pattern where you sleep with some idolized copy of your crazy, skanky ex-girlfriend." Self-satisfaction rolled off her like perfume on a French whore. "Or maybe... it was because I was just bored," She smiled.

Spike's voice dropped lower and became more predatory, "One day this chip will be gone and I will be bathing in your blood." Spike's growling warning remind Buffy he was dangerous. Brushing off the reminder Buffy rolled her eyes as Hank Summers strolled in through the doors of the restaurant.

Before, Buffy could say a word to her father; Hannah bolted from the bar, jumping on Hank like a lion on a juicy steak. Buffy eyes widened as she watched the happy couple kiss passionately. Spike examined the trio with a growing fascination.

Buffy recalled the conversation she had with Hannah. "Dad you're, engaged….." Hank wanted to settle down with a girl no older than her. "We were on the same cheerleading Squad." The comment was more to herself than anyone else. Still Buffy found herself staring at the kissing couple in dumbfound amazement. Did she know she was with my father and choose to leave out that part of her story or did she not know?

Hank coming up for air said, "Oh. I suppose you're right. I forgot you two were classmates." Acknowledging the two girls familiarity as something as inconsequential as expired milk.

On the other hand Hannah's normally brainless brown eyes sparkled with giddy realization, "Oh my god, I thought your daughter was sooo much younger. I would never have guessed you two were related. You are just so young looking Hanky... Oh my god this means I'll be my besty's step mother." Hannah's gasp of astonishment seemed to kick Buffy in the stomach, making her itch for a good slay. The growing anger was briefly interrupted by a cruel chuckle that stiffened Buffy's spine.

"Kitten who is your friend." Hank asked, looking over Spike, seemingly as innocent as any other father looking over his daughter's date.

Buffy had forgotten about the vampire she had been teasing only moments ago. Hannah looked at Spike, "Oh I am sorry this must be sooo awkward for you. Buffy aren't you going to introduce us to your boyfriend?"

Spike teased snaking arm around Buffy's waist. "Yes pet, aren't you going to introduce me to your family?" He wondered how long he could push this before Buffy snapped. Payback's a bitch, Slayer. Amusement plain on Spike's face, he watched the scene unfold.

Buffy's face grew pale as she unwrapped herself from Spike's strong grip. "What? Oh...yeah because I told you... and... well...this hmm is William." She looked between her father and the vampire sizing the other up as she gave more information, "This is my dad Hank and his fiancé Hannah who he never mentioned, ever."

A devilish grin played across Spike's face, "Why so formal luv, call me Spike." Spike eyed Hank curiously, wondering if charming daddy dearest would infuriate Buffy more than him being a complete twat. Spike picked the former given the current circumstances. He shook Hank's hand, trying to be as charming as possible.

Buffy tried to get rid of Spike, "Oh god honey, I totally forgot doesn't your band have a gig or something tonight?" She prayed Spike would give her a break and leave.

Spike was not that kind. Instead he quirked his eye brow up word before saying, "No honey, that's next week." Buffy gave Spike a look that seemed to scream I'm going to kill you when this is over.

Meanwhile, Hank scanned Spike and Buffy up and down and called over to the hostess, "Table for four in the back and the best bottle of whiskey this place has." The hostess, a young girl in a pants suit, eyed the two young women of the party. On the hostess's lush peach lips hung the normal question of ID but a quick fifty shoved in the girl's hand by Hank made the question die.

Horrified Buffy found her-self on the most awkward double date in history of dating. She grab Spike's arm gently forcing him to hang back as the hostess guided Hannah and Hank to a table in the corner. Buffy whispering to Spike, "Please go."

Smirking His petated leer he brush a strain blond hair from her face. "Come on pet, I thought you wanted me to be your date. It wouldn't do to have two men bail on you in one night."

Breathing in deeply Buffy pleaded, "I didn't invite Riley. I thought…" She shook the half expressed thought away, "You know it doesn't matter what I thought. The point is this is hard enough for me without you trying to strew with me all night. So please just go."

A moment sympathy toyed with Spike when he saw flake of the sad disappointed little girl underneath the enrage slayer. Then he remembered how she ended up in this mess. Wicked joy sparkled in Spike's blue eyes, "Under normal circumstances I would be more understanding to your predicament but my entertainment for the evening ran out on me because of a certain pain in the arse slayer."

Lowly she growled, "I don't know why I thought you could be decent about this. Fine, either leave willingly or in a dusk buster? Your choice."

Spike laughed, "Oh goody, so before that we'll make a scene of it and you can humiliate yourself in front of this entire restaurant and daddy dearest. Sounds like fun, Slayer. Let's go." When Buffy eyes widen into two large saucers, he knew he won. Jovially Spike hissed, "Didn't think so. Don't worry Slayer I won't embarrass you too much." Defeated she trudged over to table in back corner with Spike at her side.

Hannah frowned at the thought of the bitter amber liquor, "Hanky boo you know how I hate whiskey."

Hank greeted the couple warmly as they sat down. "Kitten I can't remember do you like Whisky?" Studying his daughter looking at the amber liquor.

Frowning at her father, Buffy turned to a busty waitress, "I'll have a glass of Ice tea."

"None sense Kitten, we're celebrating my engagement tonight. Champagne for the ladies." He tried to remember what his daughter liked to drink. However the only thing that came to his mind was chocolate milk and a little girl in pigtails. For a moment he longed to go back to that little girl who loved him despite all his flaws. Hank turned his attention to Spike, "Now Spike, tell me about yourself? Are you in school?"

The waitress made herself scares writing down the order champagne and ice tea. Spike shrugged answering Hank with most of the truth, "Finished my undergrad a while ago in Cambridge. Then I came to ol' Sunnydale for my PhD in Linguistics with a specialty in dead languages. "

"Dead Languages?" Hank turned over the phrase in his head. "Isn't that a little impractical?"

Spike chuckled leering at Buffy, "Trust me Hank, a well versed tongue has loads of practical applications."

Disapproving Hank changes the subject, "How does a Linguist from Cambridge come to find himself dating a ditzy girl from the Valley?"

A ditzy girl from the valley, that is all he'll ever see me as, the thought had come unbitten as Champaign danced on her tongue. Glancing toward each other the two warriors found the memory of their first meeting. It was a dark alley behind the Bronze. Buffy wore a little red number that wasn't suitable for slaying but she believe it made her look a bit older than her seventeen years and just a tad more seductive for Angel's benefit. Only he hadn't come or cared instead she was left disappointed forced to kill some in a minion in a back alley while Spike watched. Looking back now Buffy was surprised Spike hadn't made his move then. It would have been easy she knew now. Buffy hadn't even known he was there. Instead Spike had teased her with allusions to saint Vistuary day. Against herself, she replayed the memory with a warm smile. Spike had been the definition of cool in his black leather duster threatening her in that seductive way he had. She could still hear the words in her head: Buffy, "What happens on Saturday?" Spike, "I kill you." It was not a story to tell her father, by any means. A cool hand rested on her knee breaking Buffy from her memories.

Spike merely studied Buffy fondly at Hanks question. In his head he could picture the girl in red, all innocent trying so hard to look grown up. It wasn't long before a twinge of sadness entered the memory as Spike compared the Buffys. That girl was dead, replaced by a lethal woman in a little black dress, Spike found himself missing that girl in red. A half-truth would serve for an answer, He amused, "It seems like a long time ago, don't it pet? Let's see, it was the night of your parent-teacher conference and I had just started working at the library of the high school; when Joyce introduced us. There was a chemistry between Buffy and me right away." He smiled fondly at the memory of Joyce wielding the axe; before adding, "Unfortunately, we were both with someone so all that chemistry we had, got turned into seething hatred." Introspectively Spike finished the story with returning to Sunnydale for college, "Then one day I saw her at Uni she's talkin to some poncy frat boy. She looked so beautiful with her golden hair shining in the sunlight with her eyes like leafs on a tree. But she looked so sad and I thought what sodding Pillock could brush a girl like Buffy off. Well after that I realized I loved the silly bint." He hadn't met say that last part and became sheepish as he inwardly cursed himself. It had been a trick of the sun, Spike believed. It made her look gentle which made the sappy poet in him want to write.

Buffy felt as if she had been kicked in the stomach. Certain Spike would make up some terrible story about drunken frat parties or one night stands she had been shocked when he told the truth with a flare. The thing that seemed to catch her off gaurd was the last bit of the story and suddenly she wondered how much of the end was an act.

Hannah cooed, "Oh that is so sweet, isn't it Hanky boo?"

The indearment seemed to maked Buffy squirm awkwardly in the chair. Overall the Slayer seemed reactionless to Spike's edited story. The sad sappy Poet in Spike had hoped for at least flicker of something at his unexpected declaration of love but there was just nothing. For some reason the lack of responce seemed to infuriate Spike more than if Buffy had scoffed the declaration away. With a change in subject needed Spike addressed Hannah giving his best charming and disarming smile, "So poppet how does a ravishing thing like yourself meet a bloke of ol' Hanky stature."

Hannah play with a bouncy brown curl while biting her cheap cherry lips, "I know it's like super crazy right? Me and Hank... who would have guessed that my Hanky would be Buffy's dad. But I totally didn't know. I don't remember seeing him around when me and the girls stayed over Buffy's place. Any way we met at one of my shows. I am a Dancer."

Buffy couldn't help but add her two cents into the story, "Dancer? Really. So do you tap dance or pole dance?"

Hank glared at Buffy while Spike laughed as Hannah stared after the slayer puzzled, "I don't know why everyone thinks that. I mean is there like some kinda law that's says Ballerinas can't be like voluptuous?" A teasing smile stretched across Hannah's heart shape face as Spike made to answer but was stopped by a kick from Buffy. "It's cool Hanky. No need to get upset with Buffy. Yes, I totally take off my clothes for like an obscene amount of money but you shouldn't just assume someone something just because of their body type. Just look at you some people would just assume your an over privileged snotty sorority girl because of the way you look." Hannah sipped on her drink. "With no more questions, how I met Hanky. Well I was dancing in the private event room with my friend DJ. Hanky was there with his greasy lawyers buddies from his firm Wilferm and Hart. They were talkin shop while we gave them a good time. DJ got Hanky at first and I got suck with some whaleish guy with no hair that smelt like Mcdonalds. But me and Hanky's eyes met and he requested me. Well after my set Hanky asked for my number. I told him I didn't date clients but he kept coming back night after night until I gave in. The next thing I know we're getting married." Hank and Hannah stared after each other passionately in love. It made Buffy's stomach twist with a little guilt at her earlier behavior but then Hannah opened her mouth again. "Oh my God. I almost left out like the best part of this story... Hank and I are moving here!"

Buffy's mouth had drop at the declaration as Hank finally broke their loving gaze and study his daughter and realized something was wrong since her mood had soured through the night. "Kitten what's the matter?"

Buffy said in utter disbelief, "What's the matter? You really don't know?" Everything is wrong, Buffy firmly believed. Hank was a selfish womanizing jerk and now he was giving up his womanizing ways for a tramp who was young enough to be his daughter.

Hank was dumbfounded, "No, I don't understand, Kitten. I wanted you to meet the love of my life and to tell you that I am moving here to be closer to you. Yet you seem unhappy. Why?"

Buffy's mouth dropped, "The love of your life? Let me get this straight. For the last four years, you've completely and totally cut your only daughter out of your life, so you can fuck your way through every bimbo in LA. Then, finally, what? You had some realization that you actually wanted to get married and be a father again?"

Hank grasped his fiancé's hand, "Yes, but the way you say it makes it seem like a bad thing."

Spike more mockingly said, "Yep she likes to do that to people's plans. We're trying to work on it. Aren't we pet?"

With utter annoyance and confusion, Buffy said, "I can't take this, I've got to go." She got up and hurried to the exit.

Spike also stood, saying, "Pleasure to meet you both, but I should go after her." He followed the slayer out to the street.

Chapter End Notes:

Big thanks to my Beta evlane for editing this chapter. Hopeful you all enjoy it


	2. Into The Forest

Into The Forest

Chapter two

The moment Buffy bolted from the Bistro, her journey away from the well-lit streets of Sunnydale was no longer fueled by anger. Instead Buffy ambled around Sunnydale in a hypnotic haze guided only by a soft hum. Only she was not alone on her quest Spike was on the Slayer's heels as soon as she left the table in the Bistro. He witness firsthand the subtle shift from outrage to dazed in a matter of seconds. Desperately Spike tried to grab her attention by annoying her, "Real bloody mature, Slayer. Run off because Daddy dearest got himself a new missus." It hadn't worked; she kept walking farther away from Sunnydale not caring that Spike was calling out to her, "Where in the hell are you going?"

Buffy had no idea where she was going but felt the uncontrollable need to be somewhere. Due to the Hellmouth's strange power over Sunnydale: the town was noted for dry barren deserts in the east in of town, beaches in the west, caves in the south, and finally a forest in the north. Buffy's feet had carried her to the north but the patch of forest she found herself in was different from the normal trees that were scattered around the Hellmouth. No animals scampered about and no stray wind jostled the inky black leafs of the ivory trees. It was almost as if the Hellmouth opened up a portal and Buffy stumbled inside.

By all logic Buffy should be running screaming out of the forest but she felt at peace among the trees; seemingly unaware of the crudely carved faces that adorned them. Distantly Buffy could hear Spike calling after her while his feet smacked against the ground in an attempt to keep pace with her. His deep baritone voice was the only sound in the forest, "Come on Slayer! Tell me what's going on?" In contrast to Buffy, the forest had the opposite effect on Spike. The strange mystical energy that encircled the two warriors unnerved Spike, placing him on edge. Unlike Buffy, Spike was looking for any sign of movement in the forest shadows waiting for a sudden attack.

After a half hour of walking on a dirt path Buffy had stopped at a fork in the road. She closed her hazy green eyes while listening for the soft flute humming in the forest. The music seemed to call to Buffy like a mother's lullaby. The lullaby seem to guide the Slayer to the path on the left. The Slayer was moving uncharacteristically slow, almost clumsily, as she moved over stray roots. Spike called to Buffy, trying in vain to catch the Slayer's attention as she scratched herself on a sharp branch. "Come on luv, you gotta snap out of it. Somethin wanky is goin on here. We need to get to the Watcher so he can suss it out." Something was wrong with her Spike thought as Buffy pulled herself farther down the path.

In a last ditch effort to stop Buffy from going any further Spike grabbed her arm, violently turning her to face him. For a moment she stopped her hypnotic journey through the forest. Spike claimed, "Slayer, we shouldn't be here."

Buffy stared with glassy eyes at the vampire. She giggled while caressing his cheek, "It's okay, my sisters are here."

Buffy was in a trance, as the music begged her to go deeper but Spike refused to let her go. Spike turned on his game face to get a better look at the forest. With that one shift Spike knew they were being hunted. His demon seemed to warn him of their attacker, telling him without words, of the primal forces at work. The demon begged Spike to run and leave the Slayer to her fate. However the poet whined, _Stay and fight. Keep the Slayer safe_. Spike compromised with his two halves, "Bugger it, we're going back now. Something is here and it's big and nasty. I don't think you could fight it tonight."

Buffy turned to Spike with an innocent smile on her face, showing how truly young she was, "Spike, my sisters won't harm you."

Spike squeezed Buffy's arm, "You don't have sisters, Slayer."

The Slayer broke free of Spike and kept trudging forward. Against all better judgment Spike went with her. Until he was attacked by a blur, that is. A blur called Faith who plunged Spike to the ground with an extra blast of strength. He was certain he was about to meet his end at this Slayer's stake, when Buffy yanked the other Slayer off. Buffy snarled, "Mine!"

Faith pulled back from her older sister's grasp. The dark Slayer sneered down at the vampire, "Fine."

Buffy spoke, "I've missed you."

Under closer expectation Spike saw blood clinging to every part of Faith. _None of it had been hers and all of it smelt human. This slayer had some fun_ , Spike thought.

"I am not Faith, I am only borrowing her voice. It is time to come home." The words tumbled from Faith's lips.

Buffy narrowed her gaze to further down the path with a hand on her hip, "I wanna speak to Faith before I go anywhere."

A shudder ran through Faith as tears fell freely down her blood covered cheeks, "B, we fucked up so badly. You gotta run, now! She's goanna kill you."

Ready to fight Spike roared, "Hate to interrupt family reunions but we should go."

A shadow weaved between the trees and Buffy scoffed at the figure, "We already did this. Have you forgotten already? I told you. We don't do this anymore. There are trees in the desert since you moved out." A cave woman with bones tight into her dread locks and her teeth sharpen into points, jumps into view shaking her head wildly as Buffy spoke louder, "And I don't sleep on a bed of bones."

Faith's voice borrowed once more, "You know nothing." The cave woman snapped her jaws at Buffy's heels. "Where there is death. Only death can exist."

Buffy looked at the forest with new eyes discovering the leafs on the ivory trees were not black as she thought. The large leafs had been the blood from slayers. Buffy's voice was low a growl, "Is that what this is? Death."

Faith spoke, "No, this is just a stop on the road. It's time for you to go home." Tears ran down Faith's cheeks. Her eyes shot toward Buffy and Spike begging them to take action.

Spike needed no encouragement. In seconds he launched himself into an attack on the cave woman. The cave woman dodge and tackled Spike to the ground ready to pull his heart out from his chest.

Instantly Buffy had pulled the cave woman off of Spike before she could do any real damage. Soon the cave woman and Buffy were fighting like dogs on the ground. "Leave him out this. Let Faith go."

Spike got into the mix by tossing the cave woman into a tree just as she got the upper hand on Buffy. Soon Buffy and Spike were fighting in tandem as the cave woman easily dodged there attacks. However the cave woman could not fight the two warriors and control Faith at the same time. Faith came back to herself saw the battle and fled.

Spike snarled after Faith, "Craven cow." He rebuffed a blow from the cave woman sending her stumbling backward just before she gave a spin kick to Buffy's stomach.

Buffy blocked the kick as she watched Faith run from the corner of her eye. Buffy looked at Spike sadly as she took another punch from the cave woman. The cave woman swiped Buffy's feet out from under her before Buffy could make the killing blow. Buffy hissed to Spike knowing she wouldn't make it out of this fight, "Follow Faith and keep her safe." The cave woman wrapped her hands around her neck slowly sending Buffy into unconsciousness.

"Like hell I am." Spike smiled snapping the cave woman's neck thereby forcing her to release her grasp on Buffy. The cave woman laid lifeless on top of Buffy. He rolled the cave woman off of Buffy who still had not come too. With one eye on the cave woman Spike carefully scooped his Slayer up.


	3. Little Lion Girls

Little Lion Girls

Chapter Three

A long vibrating ache swam through Buffy's muscles, making every one of her movements in the soft warm bed agonizing. Slowly, she found herself growing more aware of her surroundings. She was in the dream room, lying in the bed she and Faith had made up. Only, she couldn't figure out how she got here. She didn't remember going to sleep.

"Mom's going to kill me if I don't get home soon." Buffy moaned, while she fought back her own exhaustion, resisting the urge to fall back asleep. Cautiously, she opened her eyes and crawled out of the comfortable bed. Something was wrong with the dream room, it had lost its light airiness since the last time Buffy visited. Scanning the room, she couldn't help but notice there were no doors leading out. She tried to remember if there had been one the last time she was here, but the memory evaded her like her algebra class in highschool or one of those funny little number puzzles. Though Buffy could never understand why people would want to do number puzzles. _After all, why do math-y stuff when you don't have to._

Her thoughts had distracted her. Buffy needed to focus if she was going to leave the dream room. She drew back the shades and there was no window. She pushed on the walls but none of them seemed to budge. Finally, she gave up and sat on the floor, folding her arms and tried to figure out what was going on. There was something she needed to do before she went home, but whatever the task had been, it was now lost to her. "Think, Buffy. You need to be brainy girl right now. What were you doing before you got here?" She asked herself aloud. _Okay, I was with Spike and he was being a total pain in my ass. And also, kinda sweet. No! Not sweet! So yeah, he was also sorta super yummy looking in his formal wear. I wonder... Stop it! Having lusty thoughts about evil mortal enemies is wrong. THINK BUFFY! There was something else, but I can't remember what it was. It was important though. It had something to do with Faith. I know that much._

Buffy lay back on the dark mahogany floor and stared into the cracked white ceiling. "Faith, she was the key," Buffy mused. "But why?" A large sinkhole formed in her throat. The slayer couldn't help but worry for her sister at arms. Suddenly, something shiny in the corner of the room caught her eye. She crawled on her knees to it and discovered a door, no bigger than a mouse hole. She opened it and saw two little blond girls that looked alike, except the color of their dresses: one was black and the other was white. They were no older than five and seemed to be playing with seven silver daggers.

Drawn to the girls, Buffy found herself needing to reach out to them. With maternal warmth, the slayer didn't realize she possessed, she called to the children, "Hey, kids!" Dread hit her. _Yes, call out to the possible demon children with weapons, that's the smart thing to do._

The little girl in white turned around. "Mommy? Why are you in the walls?"

Buffy struggled to explain. "I am not in the walls, I am stuck in the room behind the walls. Can you help me?"

The same child frowned in confusion. "How did you get stuck in the walls?"

"I don't know. Can you help me?" Buffy repeated, grumbling.

The little girl in black came over. "Maybe auntie Dawn could help. She's very helpful, mommy."

"Dawn?" At first, the name sounded strange to the slayer, she didn't know anyone called like this. But hearing herself say it out loud flipped a switch in her memory and Buffy couldn't imagine not knowing the person the strange girls were talking about. "My sister? She's at summer camp and won't be home until late August." Images flooded through Buffy's mind of a girl with muddy brown hair and baby doll blue eyes growing up with her.

The girl in white laugh. "No Silly! Auntie Dawn will be here tomorrow. But tomorrow is such a long way away. Maybe daddy will help."

The girl in black's face lit up at the mention of her father. "Yeah, daddy can help."

On cue, Buffy heard the click of a door swinging open, followed by the thump of boots clunking against floors. Soon cold dead tingles ghosted on the back of her neck, betraying the identity of the outer room's new occupant.

"Of course he's here", she groaned to herself before calling out through the small door, "SPIKE?"

The girls raced from their spot in front of the mouse hole and attacked Spike with hugs. "Daddy, daddy. Mommy is stuck in the walls, come see." The little girl in black pulled Spike to where the slayer was, while the girl in white climbed on his back.

Spike smirked to Buffy, crouching down to meet her jade eyes. "Hey, pet, whatcha doing down there?"

"Spike, great, just what I need, a pain in the ass vampire." She whined.

The little girl in white rolled from his back and looked at him curiously. "Can you help mommy?"

Spike nodded, "I think I can."

He pulled out a small vile from his duster pocket and handed it over to Buffy.

"Is this poison?" She asked suspiciously.

Spike laughed, shaking his head, "No luv. It will make you get small enough to fit through the door and it is completely reversible."

Buffy looked at the bottle, pulled the cork out and sniffed at it to make sure it wasn't poison, before pouring the liquid down her throat. As she drank, she got smaller and smaller, until she was able to walk through the door. The little girl in white put her tiny hands around the slayer's wrist and pulled her inside the room.

The child giggled with delight, "Look, look, mommy is the size of a doll."

The little girl in black gasped in awe, "Mommy, you should play dolls with us."

Spike tried to look stern, but failed. "Come now, my little ones, we need to get mum back to her normal size so she can go save the world."

"But she always does that and she never has time to play with us." The little girl in white whined, while Buffy squirmed around in her hands.

Spike crouched down to the child and put his game face on. "This is not a matter of discussion, young lady."

The children giggled in delight. The white dressed one leaned over and kissed him on the bumpy forehead.

"Daddy, you're funny." She exclaimed laughing.

The black dressed girl clapped her little hands in excitement. "Let's go show mommy our new toys."

Her sister jumped up and down with a squeal of 'Yes, yes!', rattling the slayer's brain in the process. The two girls ducked from Spike's outstretched arms and ran up a flight of stairs.

Spike chased after them. "I mean it, if you two don't give mum back to me in the next three seconds, I will take away your favorite lion doll."

Buffy looked up at her captor's sweet blue eyes. "Come on, sweetie, I promise me, you, and your sister will be all about the playage as soon as I get back to my normal height. Or maybe a few inch's taller if we could swing that?" The last part was directed toward Spike who chuckled, shaking his head.

This got the kids' attention and they paused in the middle of the staircase.

The little girl in black looked at her co-conspirator skeptically. "She's said this before and never followed through with it."

"Yes, but mommy seems different. You have to play with us as soon as you become normal height again." Said the little girl in white.

Buffy pleaded with them, "I promise."

The white dressed child finally gave in. "Okay. Here you go, daddy." She dumped Buffy into Spike's outstretched hand. "Daddy, will you play with us, too."

"Yes, once me and mum get everything straighten out with grandmum. Now go up there and mum will be with you soon enough." He ordered.

Spike took Buffy down the hall and into the kitchen. He placed her on the counter beside a bright green cookie jar decorated with colorful flowers.

Buffy looked at Spike. "I know I am going to regret asking this, but why do those girls keep calling me mommy and you daddy?"

"It could be because we are their parents." He laughed and fished out a chocolate chip cookie which he gave to her.

Buffy's voice shook when she whispered: "That can't be right. Vampires and humans can't have children."

Spike ignored her statement and pointed to the cookie. "Take two bites and you should be the same height as before."

The slayer did as she was told. Seconds after she swallowed the mouse sized bites, she felt a really strong pulling sensation crawling all over her body and she dropped the rest of the cookie with a gasp. The next thing she knew, she was back to normal and almost falling off the counter. Sheer slayer reflexes saved her from landing facedown on the floor.

"I should go up there now." Buffy sighed after a while.

Spike looked up the steps. "There really isn't time. She is looking for you."

Buffy gazed in the same direction. "But I promised."

"There is no time, luv." Spike stated plainly.

Worry was clear in Buffy's features. "I am so confused. Faith, is she okay? I have this foreboding feeling… I think she is dead."

Spike shrugged. "She is with the rest of them."

Buffy swallowed her growing fear. "I want to see the girls."

She got off the counter and climbed the stairs only to find herself in a giant coliseum. The sun was high in the sky, shining over a sea of decaying flesh. Blood from millions of young women stained the ground scarlet, while the sun changed the corpses into something unrecognizable. The sight of rotting flesh made bile rise in Buffy's throat. She fell to her knees, her body shaking, and heaved, but nothing came out. A blood freezing scream tore from her when she noticed that some of the bodies were no older than the little girls in black and white "Girls. Come here. This place is not safe!" She called out. _Oh god, what if their tiny bodies are also out there?_ The horrible thought made her heart skip a beat. "Girls... please come out. I want to play with you."

Out of nowhere, Willow's voice broke through the coliseum grounds. "Buffy?"

The slayer looked around the piles of the dead, ignoring the chirp of her friend's voice. A smile of relief curled on Willow's lips once she spotted the slayer. She's been searching through the maze of Buffy's mind, hoping against hope to find her and bring her back to the real world. She stumbled thought the field of dead, avoiding rotting flesh as if it was landmines. Finally, Willow got to her friend's side and grasped her by the arm.

"Buffy! Thank god I found you! I've been looking for hours. We need to go. Now!"

The redhead tried to drag the slayer away, but Buffy wouldn't budge, she needed to find the little girls. A mixture of terror and relief gripped Buffy as she turned over dozens of rotting corpses to find they were not the little cherub children.

"All these faces look the same." She mumbled.

"MOMMY!" A scream echoed through the coliseum.

Buffy turned around and saw the two little girls sitting on a giant white lion. The beast was lying down, chewing on a piece of meat. Its teeth were festering and yellow, and as long as one of the girls' arms. Buffy ran on full speed through the corpses. Willow tried to follow as best as she could, trying to reason with her. "Stop, Buffy, we need to talk."

Shouting in that way only a mother can carry off, Buffy yelled, "You two, get down from there. He is way too dangerous for you to play with." Suddenly, the Slayer's eyes widened and all the air left her body. Her gaze had darted down to the lion's blood caked jaws just long enough to realize who he was eating. Faith stared up at Buffy, her eyes now glazed into frozen blue from decay. "No! Faith….. Girls, get down from there NOW!" Mechanically, the lion bit down into Faith's decomposing body, shaking his head from side to side, trying to get every last piece of meat from the bones. All panic left the slayer to be replaced by fury.

Buffy was about to yank the two little girls off the lion when Willow got in front of her, imploring her to see reason. "You see, you've been in something like a coma for like three weeks and you need to wake up. None of this is real. You don't have kids and you're not married or whatever to Spike... which, okay, we are so going to talk about after this is all over. But the point is you need to come with me now."

Buffy pushed her friend to the side, right into a pile of bodies, without breaking her focus on the lion. Jumping back to her feet, Willow spared a glance at the shimmering door that stood in the middle of the arena.

Losing patience, the redhead pleaded: "Big, big, world ending kinda things are happening and we need a slayer to fix them. Now..." She trailed off in her fruitless attempt to get Buffy to leave the side of the lion. Neither of them noticed the cave woman moving through the field of the dead like a cat. Menacingly, the first slayer leapt to tackle Buffy, but the young slayer pivoted on the balls her feet, dodging the attack.

The mother of slayers shouted, "Whacha ye doin' here?"

Buffy's rage boiled her words into daggers. "You did this!" She roared as she threw a sloppy punch to the cave woman.

The Mother of Slayers glared, dodging the blow with grace. "Ye did dis! Ye shoulda died. I'za given ye many chances to die yet ye live."

Buffy aimed a high kick which connected with the Mother of Slayer's stomach. "I don't want to die. There must have been a reason for me to live or else the Powers that Be would have done a better job killing me." She roared.

The Mother of Slayers stumbled back before kicking Buffy's legs out from under her, sending the young slayer to the ground with a thump. The Mother of Slayers pinned Buffy to the spot. "Yea ta destroy me other daughters. Selfish little daughter don't know when ta die. Don't understand where dere death all dere could be is death." Buffy squirmed to get away from the older slayer, but could not move.

Buffy nodded, "Fine, it's my fault, take me instead, bring the others back."

The Mother of Slayers explained, "Not dat simple. Fix dis mess." Unexpectedly, the cave slayer's cracked lips pressed against Buffy's smooth ones. Something was wrong, Buffy's entire body felt like rubber and she had no more energy to struggle against the other slayer. The Mother of Slayers got off of Buffy when the kiss was over. Groggily, the blond slayer got to her feet unable to gain the strength to walk while the Mother of Slayers glared after her as she took the girls.

Sucking in some much needed air, Buffy propelled herself forward on wobbly legs until she reached the Mother of Slayers and grabbed her arm. Desperately, she cried, "Please, leave them out of this. Take me instead."

The little girl in black smiled. "Don't worry, mommy, we will see you again."

Her sister requested, "Tell daddy we love him very much. Goodbye, mommy."

The girls vanished with the Mother of Slayers. Buffy could feel her legs giving out, until Willow steadied her. "Buffy?" The witch asked.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" She sat down and watched the lion tear apart Faith's flesh while her blood stained the dirt around her. "I'm sorry, Faith. You could have been a good slayer."

Once more Willow looked toward the door that was slowly closing. "Time's running out."

"She took those girls." Buffy said lifelessly.

Calling up the last of her patience, Willow breathed out, "Yeah. But not forever. One of them said they were coming back."

"All these people are dead because of me" The Slayer whispered miserably.

Willow looked unsure. "You can't know that."

Buffy finally turned to look at her friend. "I do. I kept hoping that one day there would be no more slayers and I could go back to my normal life. And look, Wills, I got what I wanted! I killed all these girls." Tears started rolling down her face.

Disbelieve dripped from Willow's tongue, "Is that what you think?" She stared at her best friend dumbfounded.

Sobbing, Buffy explained, "My thinking it made it happen. Some part of me wanted this. It's all one big spinning wheel of bloodshed. Oh god, she was right, I should've stayed dead. All the apocalypses. That was a sign. I mean, there was one every year. The master, Acathla, the mayor. Someone always ended up dead. I died, Kendra died, Faith was turned into a murderer, and Dr. Walsh was butchered by her own science project. Death can only bring death. I can only bring death to people."

Willow got up, refusing to hear anymore of Buffy's whining. "Snap out of it! Death can only bring death is crap! All this. It has a name. It's called survivors guilt. It's a feeling and it's important. But it's not more than that, Buffy. You save lives. You've carried the weight of the world on your shoulders since high school and I-I know you didn't ask for this but you do it, every day. So, you wanted out for one second. Who wouldn't! But you can't cash in, not yet. All the slayers are gone except for you. Now get off your ass and do what you do best - save the damn world. " She offered Buffy a hand. The slayer wiped her tears away before taking it. The two friends shared a brief hug before racing to the door. They made it just in time, stumbling through. With a final crack of light, the mystery gate disappeared, leaving behind only death.


	4. The Council of Wankers

The Council of Wankers

Chapter Four

Certain realities of Giles life had come barreling into focus as the days grew longer and the heat of the hellmouth became blistering. _I am not needed any more. Not by Xander, not by Willow, and most of all not by Buffy_ , With a few stray stars in the air Giles scowled into a tumbler of scotch standing in the kitchen recalling his day with as much interest as one would have for snail racing. The former watcher believed the sunny summer day had started off simple enough. Willow had come over, however reluctantly, to sort through his books, so they could carefully scan every page into the clunky white PC. Willow always the more inquisitive of the group of youngsters had incessantly questioned the watcher about his sudden desire to digitalize his library. Though it had taken most of the day and a lot of whining on Willow's part Giles finally broke telling the witch all about his uselessness to the group and his plan to leave. He had shot down all the witch's attempts to comfort him until finally she left promising to keep his secret. The rest of the day was spend making arrangements for his trip to London. Giles had every attention to set up a new life for himself across the pond. Only he wasn't sure what this new life he had envisioned would contain. He had an interview for a curator position at Museum in London but he couldn't quite get excited about that humdrum life style.

Soon Giles' hazel eyes rested on a cardboard box send to him by one of his few remaining friends from the Watchers Council, Lydia. It had shown up on his front porch during the Adam debacle and Giles hadn't bothered with it until now. He begrudgingly trudged over to the box on the coffee table placing down his almost empty tumbler to pull out a scroll. Curious now Giles sat in his favorite plush arm chair studying the delicate ideograms painted on the dissolving papyrus that still smelt like sandalwood from long ago. Giles had been both too busy and bitter to do anything for the Council. Even if it met ignoring Lydia's cries for help. Her many ignored letters to Giles had told stories of the whisperings of the Council's fears about the instability of two Slayers. As Giles read he found himself growing more worried and found Lydia's cries for help more founded. Downing the rest of his scotch, he put down the hefty tome scrambling to the kitchen.

Giles poured himself another scotch as bitterness embraced him, like the warmth of the liquor on his lips. Fuzzy, angry thoughts from the liquor entered the watchers head, Why the bloody hell not? If Tatamy's Prophecy is going to come to pass, it would have to be under my watch. He dutifully went back to his arm chair to finish reading and translating Tatamy's last known work entitled 'The End of all Slayers'. "Of course, why wouldn't the Council execute the one seer that saw the destruction of the entire Slayer line," Giles muttered to himself. Halfway through the page, the front door of Giles' flat came splitting off its hinges, followed by the guttural yelling of Spike, "God damn it, Watcher! What in the bloody hell did you and your lot do now?" Buffy was knocked out and draped over Spike's shoulder like a bag of potatoes. Before Giles could get to his feet to examine Buffy, Spike slung her on the sofa near Giles.

"What the hell is going on?" The Watcher demanded as he checked Buffy over for injury. Once he was certain Buffy was okay for the moment. Giles forced himself to watched the vampire almost comically pacing back and forth from the open door but for some reason Spike never quite managed to leave.

Fear dripped from Spike's voice, as the vampire spat the question back at the Watcher, "What the hell is going on you ask? I came here to ask you that question. All I was trying to do was have a nice night, not causin' any harm to anyone but no, no, no Old Spikey had to follow little miss stick up her arse. This shit has all the markings of the Council of Wankers. So you fix it! I'm done." Spike became more animated with every step. He kept willing himself to step out of the Watcher's flat but the cool dead voice of the creature in the woods made him pause unwilling to leave the flat until he was certain of Buffy's safety.

Giles exhaled slowly trying to calm his nerves, "Okay, tell me what happened?" Hoping that in some strange twist, this had nothing to do with Tatamy.

Spike's frantic pacing halted as he remembered the creature in the forest. The vampire shook his head vehemently "Bugger that, whatever trouble the Slayer and her band of marry men got themselves involved in, I am not going to be part of it."

Giles took a threatening step toward Spike, "This is important, Spike. There is no time for posturing or bribing. If my suspicious are correct the natural balance of our world could be destroyed. "

Spike's resolve seemed to wither as he looked at Buffy, "Fine. We're in the woods and I feel somethin' funny but couldn't place my finger on it, so I started tryin' to get the Slayer to leave the woods. Somethin' was goin' down and it's bad and old. The Slayer starts jabbering on about her sisters and kept walking. Until we ran into that fun Slayer, Faith, and she was covered in human blood. At first I thought that it was going to be okay. Let the two Slayers have their little cat fight and then it will be over. Then the strangest thing happened, the two Slayers rambled on about some mother, who they brassed off. Then I'm guessin this mother of their's comes leaping from the shadows of this mystical forest. Then Faith ran away and our Slayer stays and fights but there was something off about her tonight." Spike's voice became small and thoughtful, almost reliving the moment he saw the primal force that had been hunting him and Buffy all night. "So I keep by her side..." Shaking off the feeling from the forest, Spike shifted back into his normal persona, "This Mother tries to kill me, but Buffy... she saved me, and her and that thing fought and for a second I thought we were going to win but this mother strangled our girl. Rupert, I thought she was goanna die so I tackle this mother or spirit to the ground and I snapped its neck. Then I checked on Buffy and she was like this." He gestured to Buffy on the sofa. "What the hell did you and yours do now?"

Giles cleaned his glasses not sure which to be more confused about, the fact that the first Slayer was back or the fact that Spike actually seemed to care. Giles put on his glasses and looked at Buffy realizing, once again, how young she was. Giles looked toward the scroll. "This isn't good. I need to make some calls," Giles picked up the phone dialing the council. Once a Council member answered Giles said the code word they were all trained in, "Pigaínete"

"What the hell is going on here?" Spike demanded.

Giles ignored Spike dialing Willow's number. The phone rang three times, before the girl in question answered, "Willow come to my place now, bring Xander and Anya... It's a lot to explain just come over. Oh wait what's Riley's number?… Thank you Willow... That's a complicated question one in which I will answer as soon as everyone gets here." Giles dialed the number Willow had just given him. "Riley… I need you to find out if Faith Lehane is still in jail…. Yes the psycho chick... It's important... Just I need to find out now. Come to my flat with the information as soon as possible… Riley, I promise all questions will be answered as soon as you get here... Just get me the information I requested."

Spike longed to rip out the watcher's throat for ignoring him. _It would be so wonderful all warm and spitting like a sprinkler._ To cover up the blood lust Spike growled at the Watcher trying loom over him, "Watcher, I hate repeating myself, what in the bloody hell is going on here?"

Clearly not intimidated by the vampire Giles found himself intrigued by Spike's concern, "Why did you save her?" His hazel eyes coolly studied Spike.

Spike had not examined his reasons behind saving the girl. He just did. "Most people would be looking for a way to repay a bloke for their courage and selflessness for recusing a loved one not givin them the third bloody degree."

Unimpressed with the vampire's lack of a response. Giles sighed changing the subject, "This mother she sounds like the First Slayer. Did she say anything?"

"I am not answering any more questions until you tell me what the bloody hell is going on here." Spike was unable to silence the nagging poet's voice in his head. The voice demanded to know what that thing was and why it attacked his Slayer. Meanwhile, Spike's demon demanded blood. Eat, hunt, kill, fuck was on repeat in Spike's head.

Cleaning his glasses Giles explained calmly, "Spike, this matter is very complicated. I will explain to the best of my abilities as soon as everyone else arrives."

A part of him wanted to storm from the flat, however, one look at the Slayer laying there so helpless in her ripped black dress and broken high heels made him reconsider. He had to know what happened. Spike made it his point to poke around the Watchers flat looking at all the old books while Giles' tried to gently wake Buffy. The Watcher was too distracted checking for broken bones to notice Spike scanning over the open book that explained the End of all Slayer's in sand script. Spike was unable to make out more than a cryptic verse that said /When one becomes two; Two will become none/ before Willow, Xander, Tara, and Anya piled into the flat shortly followed by Riley.

Willow, the unofficial third in command, raced over to Buffy, "What happened?" Pleadingly she looked over to Giles.

Giles cleaned his glasses, "I think that question is better left for, Spike."

Dramatically Spike sighed, "Bollocks. Let's see I bumped into the Slayer at the Bistro, on Main Street. She threw a tantrum over some daddy issues. I followed the Slayer into this strange patch of forest that looked like somethin out of Salvador Dali's head on acid. Met up with Psycho Slayer and some First Slayer spirit bitch. Then there was a bunch rot of about mothers and death blah, blah. Psycho Slayer ended up being a bloody coward. Slayer over here got herself knocked out by Spirit bitch. Needs me to save her arse. I do it without thanks or reward might I add. And now we're here." Spike turned his icy blue eyes menacingly over to Giles. "Now your turn Watcher. What's this rot about one becomes two and two becomes none?"

Through gritted teeth Giles ignored Spike directing his focus to Riley who hadn't taken his eyes off Buffy, "Riley is Faith still in prison?" Giles would not reacted until he got all the information.

Playing the jilted lover, Riley spat, "How did you bump into Buffy at the Bistro?" His Brown eyes narrowed at Spike, shifting between him and Buffy.

Spike stared dumbfounded at the boy. "Oh come on. Are you that insecure? Your girl is knocked out cold. And you want to know what? If me and the Slayer were on some sodding date?" The under tones of rage came bubbling to surface through Spike's rant.

"You're full of shit Spike." Riley shoved Spike into the wall. "You and that psycho Faith did this."

"Really bloody brave mate pushing me around cause I can't push back." Spike roared squirming in Riley's grasp, "Slayer and I had an unspoken truce going for the time being, cause of this chip. She didn't stake me, I stop tryin to kill her. I wouldn't dishonor that by using miss Psycho Slayer 2000 to off her. So put me down."

Xander nodded his agreement with Riley, "Because, after Adam we all know, how wonderfully trust worthy Spike can be."

Spike clenched his jaw, "That was different. I was trying to get the chip out. Wasn't actively trying to kill her. I knew Frankenstein's plan was goanna fail."

"Everyone just stop." Giles was tiring of this conversation, "Though I do not understand Spike's motives in helping us, I do know that potential Slayers have been vanishing for the past three months." All eyes were on the Watcher now, "I do not believe Buffy's present state can be contributed by some sort of team up by Spike and Faith."

Bravely Willow asks, "Then what did cause it?"

Giles cleaned his glasses, "A long time ago when the Council was still unorganized there was a man, a seer. His name was Tatamy. He lived on the black sea in a cave with a handful of followers. One day Tatamy got a vision about the era of Slayers dying out. He said: When One becomes two. Two will become none. The Mother will rise and her daughters will die. Three months ago potential slayer's have just blinked out of existence."

Willow's eyes widening at the implications, "That time line also fits with that spell we did to call on the source of Buffy's power. It was May, just before finals. And now it's July. Three months. Oh god could we have done this?"

Giles answered coolly, "I'm not sure." Readying himself for the next part of his announcement, "That's why I'm going to go to London."

"So your just gonna leave us now, after saying that?" Xander exclaimed.

The Watcher closed his eyes and explained calmly, "I have no choice, this is the first time the first Slayer left behind a victim." Giles rationalized. "I am not going until Buffy wakes up. She hasn't come too yet. So we need to figure out why. Nothing appears to be physically wrong with her but she could've sustain a head injury during her fight with the first slayer. I will take her to the hospital. Anya and Tara look up any mystical reasons Buffy could be unconscious. Willow and Xander I need you to inform Joyce of Buffy's condition." He turned to Riley and Spike who were still staring each other down. "Spike could you take Riley to where this all happened? You will be paid for your efforts." Giles assures looking over at the sleeping slayer.

Spike tilted his head to the side looking at Giles like he grew another while no one was looking. "Not enough dosh in the world to get me to spend more than an hour with Capt. Cardboard over there."

Riley's eyes grew large and he muttered, "Like hell I am working with him."

Giles sighed at the two men's animosity, "We need to find Faith. Riley, Spike is the last one to see her. Spike all you have to do is take Riley to where you saw Faith. You don't have to help search with him."

Spike couldn't recall the location in his mind. "Look even if I wanted to, and I don't. Where ever me and the Slayer were wasn't here. Not really." Spike swallowed hard trying to find the right words to describe that dark lonely place. For second his bravado slipped, "You know that passage in the bible: ' _Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil._ ' That's where we were. Only let's just say if you're a wicked creature like myself, there's a lot too fear."

The room was very quiet at Spike's declaration. Giles was first to break the silence, "What are you saying, Spike?"

"Whatever mess the Slayer's in its too biblical for my likin. Now if you need nothin more from me I am going to have a good brawl and a night cap." He rolled his shoulders back and sauntered to the door. His long fingers grasped the knob before Spike added one more thing, "Don't know if this will be helpful to your research. But Faith said 'Where there is death only death can be'. And it was time for Buffy to come home. Whatever that means."


	5. Sangre

Sangre

Chapter Five

The stars over Sunnydale were fading in the sky as the sun painted the horizon in creamy pastel shades of pinks and blues. It wasn't long before the sun's first few rays bypassed the crumble plywood boards that covered the broken windows of the dilapidated drug den. Only it wasn't just a drug den. The old ramshackle house was a bit of everything depending on who found themselves at the door. For some it was a brothel known as Sangre. Sangre in specialized in all sorts of fetishes and never turned away anyone. Then there were those that showed up to Sangre to find a black market goods. Anything anyone could ever want was found in the graffiti covered walls of the withering shack nestled in the trees.

Often times Riley Finn found himself in the den of thieves looking for adventure. The night of Buffy's mysterious attack was no different. After a failed search of the forest for the Psycho Slayer, Faith, Riley found himself walking the familiar path to Sangre's broken doors. It was Riley's firm belief that Spike had made up the whole story to throw the gang off his and Faith's trail. Determined to be right he looked for proof from his favorite escort in Sangre. A vampire and former initiative lab rat Sasha. Sasha had a porn stars body with an angel's face topped off with cherry red hair. Every time Riley saw Sasha he swore it was the last time or it was only for insert acceptable excuse. Tonight when Sasha laid on the stain mattress that sat floor wearing nothing over her creamy skin Riley had gotten straight too business. He picked her up by her hair shoving her against the dissolving dry wall. His cock strained against his jeans as he press himself against her. "I have questions for you and you're goanna answer them for me. " Riley hissed into Sasha's hear fondling her large breast.

Sasha replied by grinding her heart shape rear into Riley's crotch moaning a little. "So you wanna play rough tonight. Okay... I'm not going to tell you a god damn thing."

Riley flipped her around his large hand crushing Sasha's slender neck. Condescendence laced Riley's voice as he slammed her head against the wall breaking it just a little more. "As you can see I am not playing tonight. Spike's up to something with that Psycho Slayer Faith. What have you heard around the underworld."

Sneering a little Sasha answered. "The only Slayer Spike's been working with is that little blond cunt your fuckin. I kinda feel sorry for the vamp, once feared among his kind now turned into the whipping boy for the slayer. That girl's cunt must have some magical powers or some shit. I mean she has both Angelus and the Slayer of slayers under her spell." Sasha knew the reaction she would get from the former soldier. Effortlessly Riley tossed Sasha on the mattress. Before he kicked her in the rips. She laughed sickeningly, "I knew you wanted it rough tonight."

Riley's small cock was hard and aching against the hard fabric of his jeans. Grunting he sliped down his jeans as his rough hands squeezed his cock running it up and down his shaft. Lust hooded Riley's brown eyes while he tried to loom over Sasha. Sasha got to her knees about to place Riley's cock between her rosy lips. Riley smacked Sasha across the face lifting her chin up to meet the pool of her blue eyes "I'm not done with my interrogation yet." He squeezed her face hard enough to leave a bruises as stroked his cock. "You're lying to me. Tell me about Faith. Where the fuck is she? When did she get here? And most importantly did she contact Spike?"

Sasha knew all his little kinks that he couldn't do with his Buffy. It was always rough and violent ending with her taking a large bite out of him. Tonight there was something more than just Riley's fantasy's at work. She looked at him confused, "I hadn't even known Psycho Sue was in town until just now. I swear the only Slayer Spike has worked with or talk to is your girl." Riley could tell through the deep pool of blue eyes she wasn't lying but he slapped her any way. Forcing his cock between her legs and with a few weak thrusts followed by fake pleas for help. Sasha slipped her fangs inside Riley's neck making him come. Tangled in Sasha limps, her bite still fresh on Riley's neck, he told himself he wasn't here for sex or blood.

He couldn't help but notice Sasha staring at the rays of sun longingly and not for the first time did he wonder what she was thinking about. Riley brush a matted lock of hair from Sasha's face, a surprisingly kind gesture from the soldier. Against himself he cooed into Sasha's ear lovingly, "What's buzzing through that head of yours."

Sasha rolled to face Riley hating him for his part in her current predicament. At one time Sasha had been feared and worship the world over but then she came to Sunnydale. She was captured by the soldier's and they placed plastic in her head to keep her from killing. After that she was no longer worshipped and just to get some warm blood she had too work at the brothel. Nevertheless Sasha was a professional, Riley needed to believe she both wanted him and needed him. Moreover he needed to feel as if he had control over her. Sasha gave her best innocent smile one she used to kill many men for thinking her weak. "You." She whispered brushing lip ever so softly. It wasn't hard for Sasha to predict the response she would get from her attentional slip from the rules of their the game.

He wrinkle brow his masculine feature hard and stern. "Whatever." He rolled on his back looking at the ceiling.

Again an unexpected move from Riley. Sasha had figured he would snarl at her and ask her to fan his small ego. Her curiosity got the better of her once again and she broke character. "Whatever? Really no you shouldn't be thinking of me or tell me how much you wanna fuck me? What's wrong?" She laid on her side lifting her head up slightly.

Riley rolled his eyes. "Shouldn't you just shut up before I make you?"

"Yep that's the Riley I come to know. Violence and more violence." She joked.

He huffed, "I thought that's what you dead chick's got off on?"

Sasha quirt an eye brow upward, "Did you walk in on Spike fuckin your girl or something because it's about time. Everyone knows already so yeah. Sorry." She had expected Riley to leap to his feet and hoist her in the air by her neck for that comment but he didn't.

Introspectively Riley kept staring at the dirty ceiling, "What about the First Slayer?"

For a second Sasha didn't answer. Everyone over 400 knew about the legends of the First Slayer. No one ever dare spoke of them. Especially at a brothel. "First Slayer?" She squeaked.

Suddenly Riley wondered if he shouldn't have said that but there was no going back so he pressed on. "Yeah, First Slayer. What do you know about it?"

Sasha looked at him like he was an idiot. "What am I, Riley?" All her carefully constructed pretenses she had develop over the last year with this man had vanish with those four words.

He didn't know what to say at first. Riley snarled, "A skanky vampire, who was spared from the true death by my waning kindness."

Sasha sat up he was giving her a chance to play her old part and coward from him. She whimper, "Yes... your kindness. Please I want your kindness." She stroked his chest. "I know I am a worthless vampire. I miss being human sometimes that's all. I feel so human with you. Why do you wanna know about the First Slayer or Faith? Is there another apocalypse coming?" She let her eyes water and her voice drip with fear.

Riley cupped her large breast. Soon he felt his cock start to stiffen again as he rubbed Sasha's rose bud nibble with his rough thumb. His lips caressed her pale milky skin earning him a purred from her. He tried to comfort her, "No. Just typical Buffy craziness stuff."

The name of the other woman put Sasha off her character once more. "Buffy craziness?" Sasha repeated cruelly. Hissing now, "Is this no longer a dirty transaction?" Moving off the bed like a cat Sasha circled around Riley, almost dangerously, if not for the chip. For first time Sasha since the chip she let out the vampire she had been before. "Big mean Psycho bitch kill off your virtuous little cheerleader cunny." Riley shot up from the bed stalking toward Sasha, halting her mid circle. He didn't shout or speak he slapped hard her across the face leaving behind a red mark. Riley was certain if she were human she would've screamed or cried out in pain. However, Sasha only leered at him, "Oh I know now. She really is fuckin good old Spike. Yeah. My friend saw them all cozy at The Bistro together. That's what it is right. She dumped you. And now you're looking for reasons to bring ol' Spike down." Once again Riley said nothing, choosing to take action instead. He wrapped his hands around her throat. She snarled, "No? That was a good one too. It has something to do with the First Slayer right? Did the old cunt get tired of the new girls or something and kill them both? Oooh that would be good. No more slayers after that massive fuck up."

Riley tangled his large hand into her hair. A false cry of pain from Sasha's plump and spicy lips made Riley want her again. Cruelly he sneered, "You don't get to be jealous of her. That's not what this is." It wasn't long before he had Sasha pinned underneath him. Her vampiric features shown through her normally angelic face. Snarling and hissing she shoved Riley making the chip fire as a real scream of pain lurched through the room. Riley moaned at the sound as he turned her over shoving his hard cock into her rear. He pulled on her hair making her scream louder as Sasha grew flush. Her face warmed as she felt an onset of an orgasm on the rise. Her screams turned to breathy moans as Riley slammed inside her rear. Sasha's blue eyes were huge as the first wave hit her making her knees shake as she came. Soon she flipped Riley over making him land on his back. Once again the chip fired from Sasha's rough contact with Riley. The zap electricity made her convulse forcing her to fall backwards as she screamed. Riley leaped on her thrusting his cock into her tight quim. "Oh god your so fucking tight." Riley hissed.

Even though Sasha's head screamed in agony, she bit into Riley's neck as roughly she could manage without killing him. She drank deeply ignoring the thrum of shocks in her head. Quickly Riley exploded inside Sasha as she hissed, "Mine!"

Riley licked his own blood off her lips giving a ragged, "Yours," in reply.

Rolling off Riley Sasha huffed, "Never say her name to me."

"She's my girlfriend. She's not dead." Riley hissed getting off the bed.

Sasha rolled her eyes for Riley to see, "Your little Buffy will never be yours. No matter how hard you try. Now you can fuck her as much as you like but if you ever bring up her name in here again. I will-"

Riley laughed, "You will what. Threaten me? Kill me? Tell Buffy? Please tell her. You'll be turned to dust before you finish the first sentence."

She Snarled, "Oh I'm goanna tell her everything. I will fuckin paint a picture too when I do it. And I'll do it in front of Spike and the rest of her little friends. I know for a fuckin fact at least Spike will believe me. He'll be able to sense my claim on you. If by the slightest miracle he doesn't back me up or she doesn't believe Spike either and she stake's me on principal. She'll always wonder about that suicidal vampire. I promise you this Riley Finn, you will never get to have her again."

The mark's on her neck bristled at her words and Riley felt very cold. He ran from Sangre as fast as his feet could take him.


	6. Rats Before Slayers

Rat before Slayers

Chapter Six

Spike slumped dejectedly on a stool in Willy's Place while howls of delight surrounded him. The shrieking sound of the demon hoards echoing off the piss stained walls disturbed him more than the normal bar room brawls Willy's was famous for. News traveled fast in the demon world, so, naturally, whispers of the Slayer's possible death were already plaguing the darker streets of Sunnydale. Something had changed in the air, like a particle that hadn't been noticed until it was gone. Most of the supernaturals in town could feel it and reactions differed depending on species. The pure blood demons loved the new staler air while other, more human creatures, found it disagreeable. Though Spike hadn't quite figured out where he stood on the matter, different patrons of the bar kept coming up to him with the same question, 'Is the slayer dead yet?', he first few times he gave non-committal answers but by the eighth he had had enough. With a growl of annoyance, the vampire downed yet another shot of whiskey. With liquid courage and blind rage coloring his moves, he grabbed the large chaos demon who had just approached with the same damn question and, with a vicious twist, Spike ripped his head off, effectively silencing him and every other creature in the bar.

Snarling, he turned to the crowd of onlookers. "Anyone else got any questions about the sodding slayer? No? Good!"

He smashed his shot glass before staggering from his spot in the corner of Willy's place. Bumping into creatures that on a normal night would have snapped him in half, but tonight they didn't care, everyone in the demonic world was celebrating. _All the Slayers were gone, save one, and she would die soon enough. The demonic community would make sure of that, but right now there was celebration in the air, and no one wanted to make battle plans until they were certain that all the Slayers were gone for good,_ Spike pondered _. I should be happy, no more Slayers after Miss Stick up her arse dies. Soon, we will rule... There will be nothing protecting this world from chaos... Damn girl, she would be the last Slayer. I should be helping my brothers at arms, planning the perfect way to kill that bitch._

Spike, who was now well away from Willy's bar, noticed that the streets were dead and the only people out were those that wanted to be a monsters meal. _I should be jumping at the opportunity to kill the last Slayer. I would spread that bitch's guts across the battle field and then fucked Dru's brains out._ He flopped on a bench and stared up at the stars, wondering if Dru could see him right now, in one of her visions that no one else really understood. He wondered what she was doing lately, or rather, who. Did she even think of him anymore? _It's this chip's fault. It makes everything all grey and disappointing._

A red Mercedes that seemed to scream, 'Yes I do have a tiny penis but it's okay, I make more money than god,' pulled next to Spike's bench. Though he could feel a pair of eyes intently watching him, he did not care. The residing heartbeat thrumming from the car told Spike whoever was watching him, was human and therefore no one to be concern with. Instead he fixated on the grass poking from cracks in the sidewalk, debating when everything had gone so wrong. The insistent honk from the car finally broke through his thoughts and Spike lifted his head to look at the intruder

"Are you brooding because I can drive around the block and come back when you're done with it." Hank joked from the safety of the car.

More than a little confused Spike felt his eyes narrow as if squinting would somehow puzzle out why Buffy's father was here. "I don't brood. That's another gits job. Now, if you're lookin for Buffy I'm afraid I can't help you."

A wry smirked landed on Hank's lip, "Hop in. We need to talk."

The smugness in Hank's voice made Spike bristle. "Not interested in chattin right now, mate, so if you could piss off that would be perfect." In the vampire's long life experience, no good had ever come from strange men needing to talk in fancy cars. _It just sounded too much like a bad action movie,_ Spike inwardly admonished.

Not used to being told no, Hank pushed further, "I have an offer for you."

 _Definitely a bad action movie with some hostages or bribery involved,_ Spike speculated without saying a word. Under normal circumstances Spike would've flashed some fang with a colorful but tasteful refusal but the tugging of his morose Curiosity for all things Slayer prevented him from doing so.

Tilting his head to the side, he said:" So…You have an offer for me. If I can guess what it is, will you go away?"

Carefully, Hank laid down one of his cards, to show he meant no harm. "Let's cut the crap. You're a vampire, my daughter's a slayer. Do you want to talk or not?"

Instantly Spike shot up from the bench and approached the car wearily. "How in the hell do you know that?" It was a well-known fact among Buffy's circle of associates that Hank had been uninvolved in her life for many years. Moreover, Spike was under the impression that daddy dearest knew nothing of the girl's second life.

Exasperated now Hank huffed much like his daughter always did. "Look, Mr. Pratt, I don't have all night. I have an offer for you but I can't discuss it with you on the side of the road. So are you coming or not?"

The simple utterance of a name Spike believed was long forgotten, sent a charge through his stiffened spine. It had been over a hundred years since his surname had been used.

He growled, "How in the bloody hell do you know my name?" Suddenly, the vampire wondered if the older man was even human. Or Buffy's father for that matter.

A smug smirk curled on Hank's lips. "I thought we were pass introductions. Now, come on, I am late for my 2 o'clock with the creature from the Black Lagoon." The dare in the man's voice compelled Spike to move forward and into the car.

They drove in silence for a while, each sizing the other one up. After ten or fifteen minutes of Spike waiting for Hank to, provide more information, the quiet became unbearable. Pensively, he examined the other man's carefully constructed mask of indifference and the deep well of jade in his eyes. Spike couldn't quite deny Hank's relation to his Slayer.

Finally, Spike caved, "Not that this whole silence bit isn't wonderful, which is not, but I feel the need to know what you could possibly want with a soulless vampire like myself?"

Hank supplied casually, "It's not what I want Mr. Pratt. It's what you want." He added with a wink.

The cockiness in Hank's voice finally drove Spike to vamp out. "The people who used to call me Mr. Prat have been dead for 126 years. I should know, I killed them. So are you going to start explaining yourself or am I going to have to be persuasive."

"Really? Persuasive? That's your threatening line? The chip really has made you soft." Hank scoffed, "Yes, I know about the chip. I know you were not named William the Bloody for your gruesome deeds. I know you have tried to kill my daughter but you never went through with it. You see, that is what made me interested in you. She was still a young thing and learning, not yet as good as someone of your age, so why couldn't the great Slayer of slayers finish off my little girl? I couldn't understand it. Then I heard your little story and saw how you looked at her when you thought no one was watching. And it hit me. You want her. Not in that whole I'm a Vampire let me eat you kind of way either. But here's the problem - she will never want you. Let's face it, why would she stoop so low for a soulless castrated vampire like yourself? You are beneath her. But I'm digressing. I am here to offer you a deal. Keep an eye on my daughter. Protect her if needed but I want to be informed of how she is doing."

Spike fangs retracted and his human features returned on his face. He looked out the window trying to find the right words. Frowning, he said: "You know if I am so bloody beneath her why on earth would you want me to do the whole stalking bodyguard bit. I am pretty sure the Great poof is doing that stick for free as we speak."

"Angel's soul is far too fickle for my liking. And he's too honest and martyr like. You see, my friend, you're not only a dishonest monster but a selfish one at that." The car stopped outside of the dilapidated high school. Hank jovially looked over at a pouting Spike before continuing his pitch. "And a dishonest and selfish monster you can always trust to be dishonest and selfish. Honestly. It's the martyrs and heroes you want to watch out for, because you can never predict when they're going to do something incredibly stupid." Hank laughed a little at Spike's clear confusion. "Now you, as both a dishonest and selfish man, will always do what benefits you the most. And right now the deal I have for you benefits you. You can't protect or spy on my little girl with that chip in your noggin. So I want to give you your balls back."

Slowly Spike asked, "What are you?"

"Not human. But you already figured that part out." Hank flicked a card out of his pocket, "I know a doctor who worked under Walsh. His name is Tomas Fleshing. He owes me a favor and he's waiting for you at this address. You can have the chip out within the hour if you want." He knew he had Spike. Hank could see it in the way he stared after the card longingly but whatever vestiges of honor remained in the vampire psyche were warring against his nature. Calmly Hank shrugged, "Think about it but not for too long Dr. Fleshing will only be there until sunrise." He pressed the business card into Spike's hand.

Almost reverently Spike examined the small rectangular. _It is just across town at that veterinarian office._ Swallowing against the lump in his throat, he said in a low voice "A dangerous move, how do you know I won't betray you and kill you and your daughter? I've done it before. Remember? I am a dishonest and selfish monster."

Hank laughed bitterly, "Oh Spike, I've worked for some pretty evil sons of bitches. I mean creatures that lie, rape and murder like it is breathing. And let's be honest, I am a pretty evil son of a bitch myself, just ask my ex-wife. But you, my friend, are not evil. I am merely offering you payment for something you would be doing anyway."

With one more look at the card Spike sighed dramatically, "Sorry, mate. Protecting the Slayer's arse is too risky for my likin. I am certain you'll find another mercenary up for the challenge." Spike got out of the car giving his goodbye.

Hank nodded, "I get it. You think you'll never get the girl if you get that chip out. You'll never get the girl anyway but do whatever you want. By the way, a parting gift is inside, waiting for you. Something to ingratiate yourself with those damn Scoobies that hate you with a burning passion." He pointed to the school before driving away.

A whiff of stale blood caught Spike's attention. It smelt like sex, cigarettes and the sweet smoky musk of slayer. He followed the scent down the crumbling hallway until he got to Faith lying in the hall outside the old school library. Her stomach had been ripped open and rats were eating her insides. Uncertain of his next move, Spike made his way to the hospital to find Giles.

The hospital was a place Spike knew well. _I don't want the Slayer. I don't like the Slayer. I have no desire to help the slayer. And I sure as hell don't want to be indebted to a bloke like Hank._ The business card weighted heavy in his pocket as he entered through the main entrance.

In all of Spike's unlife, he hadn't expected to ever visit a slayer in the hospital. _You're not some sodding nancy boy visiting some long lost love. You are looking for that damn Watcher! Who really should be paying you at this point for all this information you have been giving him,_ Spike berated. He marched down the sanitized halls searching for the Slayer's room. _Shit I forgot Joyce will be in there. Should I bring flowers for Joyce? Okay that's stupid. The Slayer is your mortal enemy, you don't bring flowers to your mortal enemy's mother!_ He lurked outside the room, watching Joyce clutch Buffy's hand for dear life while Giles talked to her. Swallowing any nerves, Spike knocked on the aluminum door frame.

Joyce gave a sad smile, "Hello Spike. You may come in. Or do vampires need invites to come into hospital rooms? I'm still not certain on all the rules. Is it just vampires who need invitations in to places or is it all demons? Because if it's just vampires, isn't that a little arbitrary. And I am babbling. Sorry, Spike, it's been a long few hours."

Spike stepped in feeling the Watcher's eyes on him, "Technically no, we don't need invites to public places like this but I wager Rupes here is goanna have Glinda and Red put the magical whammy on this place soon enough. So after that creatures like myself won't be able to get in. How are you holding up, love?" He looked between the red rim eyes of Joyce and the sleeping petite form of Buffy. A pit formed in his stomach as he stepped deeper into the room. Suddenly it felt smaller somehow and far less secure. _Even if Rupes puts up wards that's not going to stop human assassins from creeping in. But you want to know what will? A master vampire with his bite back._ He could feel himself fingering the card in his pocket. _No, bad Spike! Remember Adam. He promised to get the chip out too and that just went over brilliantly. Letting Hank muck about in your noggin my a bloody terrible plan. Why risk your arse for the Slayer. The chit has her friends watchin her back._

Joyce pulled Spike from his thoughts with a forlorn, "Oh some minutes are easier than others. Rupert was talking about trying to wake Buffy up magically." She gestured to Giles who was standing by an insipid water color scene of a beach with children at play.

Giles took this moment to step into the conversation, "Yes, that is the plan. Joyce, will you excuse Spike and I for a second." Giles clutched Spike's arm, forcibly removing him from the room and out into the hall. "I can't help but wonder why you're here, Spike. I thought you wanted no further involvement in this situation." The watcher stared hard after the vampire who seemed to squirm under his scrutiny.

Quickly Spike rattled off an explanation, "I don't. It's just hmm I was well hmm, uh, heard from some uh blokes at Willy's where that bitch Faith might be and seeing how I am low on dosh at the moment you might be willing to fork over some for the intel." The lie came easier with every word he spoke.

Unimpressed Giles coldly explained, "Well if your information proves to be useful, you will be rewarded accordingly."

"Right, got it mate." Looking once more at Joyce and Buffy, Spike felt resolve falter in regards to his involvement in this growing crisis, "Bloody hell. What are you going to do about the Slayer?"

Suddenly very confused, Giles asked, "What do you mean?"

Sighing dramatically Spike explained calmly, "Let's just say where Second String's body is, wasn't the only thing I heard at Willy's."

Understanding filled Giles' hazel eyes. He let go of Spike's arm. "What have you heard?"

Looking around the vampire frowned, "You know damn well this place isn't the best location to keep away assassins that will want your girl dead." He couldn't say too much walls had ears after all but he could give the watcher a heads up. Right now Spike couldn't be sure how Hank or any of the supernaturals figured out about Buffy's brush with death. "You haven't told anyone outside of the Scoobies and Joyce about Buffy's current predicament?"

Glaring, Giles groaned, "Besides you, no." He folded his arms trying to figure out Spike's motivations once again. "Are you certain Faith's dead?"

Spike couldn't tell how much to say in the open like this but he gave cursory nod as a yes. "I can't tell you anything for certain without some payment up front."

"I really don't have time for this, Spike." Giles huffed, growing more frustrated.

"Thank I s'pose you should be working on getting me some dosh. How about this - I'll give you an hour to get some cash together and you'll meet me at the old highschool." Spike explained hoping he hadn't given too much away in such an open area. "Tell Joyce goodbye for me." He stalked away allowing his feet to guide him to Dr. Fleshing.


	7. Vanishing Spark

Vanishing Spark

Chapter Seven

Faith's eyes were like two mud puddles that had been frozen over. The brown was still there but was lessened somehow and turned bluer from the glaze of decay. Every time Buffy closed her eyes, she saw Faith's dead gaze pinning her in place, 'You finally did it, B. You killed me,' Faith's voice was all sex and fire in Buffy's head. The sultriness of the dark haired slayer's voice was eerily contrasting with the cool mockery that shone in her lifeless eyes. The effect made Buffy's stomach churn. Out of the seemingly countless dead, decomposing bodies in that nightmarish coliseum, Faith's face was the only one that mattered. Buffy tried to wash the memory away by completing her normal morning routine of showering, brushing her teeth and getting dressed, but each and every move was performed in a daze. Once finished, she went down the stairs to see her mother and her sister, before she had to go to a Scooby meeting.

Just as Buffy was about to enter the kitchen, she heard Joyce and Dawn arguing about something she couldn't quite grasp, their voices sounding as if from very far away. The image of Faith as a human chew toy for the little girls' pet lion crashed over her and made her sway on her feet. The children seemed to pull at the slayer's heart and she couldn't help but worry about them alone with the Mother of Slayers. _God, Buffy, get it together! They weren't real!_ She gave herself a mental shake before entering the brightly lit kitchen and bidding her family a tired 'good morning'.

Something was different since she woke up almost two weeks ago. An oppressive sense of loss stained every cell of Buffy's being. It seemed to nag and chew on the fringes of her mind. 'You're not the slayer anymore,' it screamed. Yet none of her friends knew about this. Every time the words tried to form on her lips, they would disappear at the sight of a hopeful, reassuring smile from one of them. After all, she did not have any proof that she was no longer the slayer. It was just like the day after she was called to perform her sacred duty. There had been this peculiar feeling in her gut that something was fundamentally different, but that was it.

She had lingered in the hospital for longer than she needed to, in order to avoid any questions about the dream world and the forest. Though she expected Willow had already told Giles small pieces of the former. Buffy swallowed up the angst with a glass of orange juice, readying herself for whatever fight her mother and sister were having today, something that occurred often ever since Hank breezed back into their lives.

Passively, Dawn and Joyce were negotiating terms of an agreement Buffy couldn't quite figure out. For a second Buffy could've sworn she heard her mother attempt to guilt Dawn into seeing Hand-Job Hannah. _No way mom would actually want Dawn around Hannah Deverone._ She sat at the kitchen island with her best fake smile as Joyce slid a plate of blueberry pancakes in front of her. Suspiciously, she eyed her mother. The one thing both Buffy and Dawn knew for certain was that Joyce didn't make blueberry pancakes unless there was bad news. Dawn's cat died - blueberry pancakes. Dad's moving out - blueberry pancakes. Selling the house - blueberry pancakes. _Yep, she's up to something._ Buffy glanced at Dawn who was now angrily stabbing one tiny fruit with her fork.

"Okay, so I'm assuming that there's something seriously wrong with the force?" Buffy asked wearily.

Joyce huffed, already more than tired of this argument with both Dawn and Hank. "As you know, I am supposed to go on a buying trip to New York for the next two weeks. But Marcy wants me to stay longer, to check out a few upcoming artist. So I'll be gone longer than I originally expected. I might be spending the rest of the summer there. I was going to take Dawn with me, but now your father wants to spend more time with you girls, so he's invoking the custody arrangement so Dawn will stay with him and Hannah until school starts in September. He also would like you to stay with him too, Buffy."

Buffy gasped, "Oh I am so not staying with Hank and Hannah."

"If Buffy doesn't have to do it, than I shouldn't have to do it." Dawn whined and folded her arms in front of her.

Joyce sighed, "Dawn, this is important to your dad. He loves you very much." Then she turned to Buffy, "And I know you're nineteen and I can't make you do anything, but it would be nice to show some solidary with your sister and go to your father's place for the rest of the summer."

Buffy grumbled, "Come on, mom, you don't have to make Dawn go. How many times did Hank forget about the custody arrangement when it benefited him?"

Exasperated now, Joyce scowled, "Your father loves you two. And I know he's hurt you, girls, but now he's trying to make it up to you both. Dawn, if you can call your father and tell him you don't want to see him, fine, you don't have to go." She looked at her younger daughter sternly for a second.

The girl shifted in her seat uncomfortably. Desperately, she looked anywhere but at the pale lake water eyes of her mother. "Ahgre." She growled in that teenage way before she shot from her chair and stomped away, making as much noise as possible on the way to her room.

Buffy was about to follow her sister's lead with barely two bites of her breakfast taken, when Joyce pinned her to the spot with mother's guilt. "Buffy, I know you're angry with him and for good reasons. I know you have a lot on your plate with your friends, the slaying and Riley. So I am not going to expect you to see him. But it would make me feel better if you at least tried to connect with your father."

The petty family problems were the last thing Buffy wanted on her mind right now, as they paled drastically to the ones of the slayer variety. She huffed in annoyance, "Fine. I'll spend time with Hank but I draw the line at staying there until school starts." Buffy got up from the kitchen island, determined to leave. "I have to go to Giles."

Joyce frowned at her eldest daughter, "Buffy…." Unspoken words hung uselessly in the back of her throat. The slayer was halted by the back door, her face a mask of indifference. Joyce brushed a stray hair from her face, "I love you."

With half a smile Buffy groaned, "I love you, too. And I really will try with Dad." She hugged her mom. "I really have to go now."

The long walk in the warm southern California air soothed Buffy's troubled mind. Now that she was no longer in recovery, she would be expected to pick up her normal slaying duties and go to Scooby meetings, but she wasn't sure how to play that role anymore. She hung by Giles' door, plastering on her bubbly mask of joviality, before she entered the apartment.

Giles was in the middle of pouring over some scroll, but Buffy didn't need a dusty old piece of paper written by some man from thousands and thousands of years ago to tell her what she already knew. Every would-be slayer was gone and they weren't coming back. However, Buffy couldn't figure out how to tell the cluster of do gooders sitting around Giles' coffee table, eating donuts and flipping through books, that all their efforts were in vain.

False pretenses underway, Buffy announced her present with a sugary, "Hey guys, how's the research going?"

Xander grunted, "Too many books. Not enough coffee." His fingers were white with powder sugar as he flopped back on the sofa beside Anya. He leaned his large head on her shoulder to check on her progress in the large leather-bound tome called: _The Anthology of Slayers: Legends and secret origins_. Though he could not understand the strange squiggles of text in the book, he did understand the doodles in his girlfriend's flowery notebook. "Okay, I might be missing something, Anh honey, but what does _Courage the Cowardly Dog_ have to do with dead slayers?"

Anya shrugged, "Other than it being about a post-apocalyptic reality where humans are stupidly oblivious to everything? Absolutely nothing."

Willow looked up from the book she was cradling when Buffy walked in. An optimistic smile stretched across the redhead's face as she explained "Me and Tara might have a spell to help locate potential slayers."

Buffy held back a laugh as she looked at the hope etched on Willow's face. _There are no potential slayers to find._ Coyly, she asked, "Oh? How does it work?"

A smile that could rival the sun in brightness shot from Willow towards her girlfriend. "Actually it was Tara's idea. Go ahead, tell them, baby."

Tara gave a shy, innocent smile, full of warm affection. "There, there, is this-s-s spell that, that can kinda show p-p-p-people auras that me and Will can enhance by, by, using that spell that, that, you guys used to c-c-c-call to, to the first slayer. This way the, the spell w-w-w-will only effect those, those, that, that, have the p-p-p-power-r-r of the slayer and, and, potential slayers."

Panic started to bubble in Buffy's chest. _I am not the slayer any more._ The words bounced around in her head, unable to come out. No matter how many times Buffy's thought it, she couldn't say it. In fact, most of the time she didn't know whether to laugh or cry about it.

Lost in her mussing, Tara's concerned voice startled her. "Buffy, are you are okay?" There was no stutter in her words, just calm worry. The sweetness of the witch made Buffy want to confess everything, but then Willow started to speak and Buffy withdrew her confession.

The redhead seemed uncomfortable as she looked at her best friend. "Thought you would be excited about this. If this works, we'll be able to find other potential slayers before the first slayer kills them."

Giles looked up from the scroll, rubbing his bleary eyes. Weariness mixed with scotch dripped from his every pore. Guilt nagged at Buffy, screaming at her to tell the watcher everything, if just for the fact that he would stop his fruitless pursuit of the vanishing slayers.

Grimly, Giles explained, "I wouldn't count on it. Last night the Council informed me that their seers can't sense any potential slayers on this plane anymore." He looked over the young people in his flat before adding, "It's as if the first slayer blinked them out of existence."

 _Blinked?!_ That was the final straw. Hysterical laughter burst from Buffy's lips. She spat coldly, "Blinked? You got the wrong word there, Giles." The sea of decaying flesh of millions of potential slayers stayed with her. Irate, she explained, "Massacred, that's what happened. The Mother of Slayers massacred her daughters."

"Mother of Slayers?" Giles let the title dance on his tongue distastefully for a few moments before inquiring more.

She answered the implied question, "Like the first slayer, but lacking all her good nature and sense of humor." The quip tumbled off her lips with cold mirth. Before she could explain further, the door of the apartment crashed open and slammed shut. Spike ripped off the burning blanket and stomped on it to extinguish the flames. Grateful for the interruption, Buffy addressed the newcomer, "You should cool it on these afternoon power walks, they don't seem to be agreeing with you."

She studied the vampire that had recently been fighting beside her, as he leered at her. "Do I hear a note of concern for little ol' me, slayer?"

She rolled her eyes, unable to shake that immature part of her brain that blamed him completely for Faith's death. "Concern for you? A world of no. Wondering why you're here and suddenly being Mr. Helpful lately has me a little boggled." Instantly she regretted the harshness of her tone when Spike's sky blue eyes flickered with a touch of hurt that remained unnoticed by anyone else in the room.

Spike glared menacingly. "You know, slayer, you should be grateful for my help, after all, I don't see Captain Cardboard or the Great Poof stickin by you in your hour of need."

Spike was right, of course. Riley had been flaking more and more on Scooby meetings and he had only come to the hospital to see Buffy once after she woke up. If that wasn't bad enough, Angel was too busy with his crusade in helping the hopeless to even return any of the messages Giles had sent him while Buffy was temporarily out of commission. Though all of this should have left an ache in her heart, she couldn't find the will to care.

Buffy frowned, undeterred, "Changing the subject doesn't change the fact that the last time you were all helpful guy, you tried to set us up so Adam could kill us."

Xander agreed from the background. "Thank you. I've been sayin that bleach boy is up to something for weeks."

Spike ignored the boy and stepped closer to Buffy. "One: I knew you could take down Frankenstein, two: this situation is completely different, and three: the watcher is paying me for my loyalty."

Buffy's heart threatened to beat right out of her chest at Spike's proximity. She knew he was dangerous, but she had never seen him as a threat. Now, without her powers, Spike's bravado suddenly seemed much more than smoke and mirrors. Cavalierly, she brushed her hair to the side and placed her hands on her hips. "I don't care, Spike."

A toothy smirk lazed across his lips, as he caught the scent of fear rolling off the slayer. Seductively, he purred, "Tell me, slayer, what really has your knickers in a twist?"

 _That's it, no more Miss Nice Slayer._ Her fist flew into Spike's nose but it lacked the usual strength. Spike's head jerked back in surprise at the weak punch. Questions wanted to dance off his tongue, but he held them back as Buffy furiously tossed an accusation at him that burned like holy water. "If it wasn't for you, Faith would still be alive and well."

"Mind tellin me about the mental gymnastics you had to do to come to that conclusion?" he demanded in a cold tone, completely taken aback by the whole situation.

She wanted to fight. Hit something until it felt as bad as she did, but she couldn't, she didn't have the strength. Her fist hurt after she punched Spike. So she traded in violence for a glare and a snarl. "I asked you to go with Faith and keep her save. She was the last slayer ever and now she's dead." Tears pricked the corners of her eyes as the image of Faith's body flooded her mind.

Spike longed to touch her, just pull her into his arms and wipe away her tears. An unneeded breath escaped his chest as his hands balled into fists. The simple inhale of air allowed Spike to regain his composure. "Second String abandoned us with that thing. I was not about to risk my hide for her well-being. At least not when yours and my own were at stake."

Angrier now, Buffy spat, "That wasn't your call, Spike!"

"Like hell it wasn't my call, slayer." He wanted to physically shake her stubbornness away. "You would've DIED!" Spike emphasized the last word with a growl.

Her green eyes shone with fire when she snarled back, "I was supposed to die, Spike."

The argument had captivated the group, until Buffy's last words echoed like a thunder. The room fell eerily silent as the gravity of what Buffy had just said sank in. Giles' voice hissed through heavy silence. "That's it! Clearly, you and Spike know more about what's going on here than the rest of us, so I want an explanation. Now!"

Buffy's shoulders slumped as she tried different word combinations in her head in order to form the clearest explanation. Only, words had never been her thing and putting feelings into words was a nightmare for the Slayer even on a good day. So, she was grateful when Spike spoke up. "I already told you everything I know about this first slayer nonsense."

The bite in his tone betrayed his lie, it was clear to Buffy, but she decided to let it pass for now. Giles, oblivious to the lie, glared at the vampire. "Then do shut up so Buffy can explain herself." He folded his arms in front of him and narrowed his eyes at the slayer.

Buffy took a deep breath before starting her story. She talked and talked, pacing around the room, always mindful not to give too much away about two little girls in black and white. The only interruptions were a few 'Dear Lords' from Giles. When she finished the story, the slayer slumped into a chair, emotionally exhausted. The watcher took his glasses off to clean them before asking, "Now, Buffy, are you sure you can't tell us anything more about these girls?"

An over exaggerated groan poured from Buffy, "What else is there to tell? I told you everything about them."

Giles pondered for a second, "Are you certain there were seven daggers?"

"Yes." Buffy huffed out.

Giles reviewed his notes once more, looking for anything that seemed out of the ordinary. However, before Giles could ask another question, Willow jumped in with her own. "Why was the lion only eating Faith?"

"I don't know." Buffy shrugged.

"Maybe he just had a thing for busty brunettes?" Xander joked.

Anya glared at him, "Maybe _you_ have a thing for no orgasms."

"Well ummm perhaps it was because Faith was a slayer." Tara offered helpfully.

A lightbulb went off in Buffy's head. She whipped her head around to look at Spike, who was sprawled out in a chair. "Spike, you said you found Faith's body. Where was it?"

Spike could see the cogs in Buffy's head turning, "At the highschool. No doubt second string was just hiding out there until spirit bitch found her." For the briefest of seconds Spike felt his inner William tap dance on his tongue, just begging for Spike to tell the Scoobies about Hank.

Buffy's mouth shifted into a hard line. "No… Faith wouldn't go there, too many bad memories for her. Also, the mother wouldn't have killed her so close to the Hellmouth."

"So you think something else killed Faith?" Willow squeaked out.

If it was even possible, Buffy found herself growing grimmer still. More to herself than to anyone else, Buffy stated, "If Faith was the last real slayer, than it makes sense for someone or something to take her out. Which means, some big bad wants to use the slayer shortage to its advantage." Five out of six pairs of eyes stared at her, uncertain of the truth of her words. However, the sixth set of sky blue eyes seemed to agree with her silently. She made a mental note to confront Spike about that later.

Xander's eyes turned to saucers. "Okay, didn't we defeat the big bad of the year just a few months ago?" His voice was joking but the way he grasped Anya's hand a little tighter revealed the fear behind his words.

Giles looked over the people in his flat before settling his gaze on Buffy. "Nothing has gone after you." He stated.

"No." Buffy frowned, suddenly wondering why nothing had happened to her yet.

"You are the last slayer." Giles inserted dumbly.

 _There is a damn good reason why no big bad is coming after me_ , Buffy thought bitterly. She shook her head before speaking out loud. "I am not the slayer." Finally the words the words fought their way out "I lost my powers."


	8. The Shadows

The Shadows

Chapter Eight

Sunnydale Memorial Hospital's morgue was always abandoned after five o'clock, for as long as Ben Wilkinson had worked there. It was rumored that anyone who went down into the ghostly morgue after nightfall, was going to die. Most people, who worked the graveyard shift at the hospital, took the rumor to heart, and those who didn't, normally proved the rumor right, appearing in a body bag the very next day. Though Ben believed the rumors to be true, he thought, with the right precautions, he would be reasonably safe when he entered the cement room that housed the dead of Sunnydale. Of course, he never told anyone he went to the morgue after dark. He didn't want any questions from his co-workers or lectures from his superiors. After all, he didn't need to be reminded of the whispered dangers of the night that lurked in the mountains of shadows of the morgue. He was in business with those creatures. For the most part, Ben had been able to make a boatload of money off the many castrated demons the Initiative left behind. However, the young capitalist noticed his profits dropping for the last couple of weeks. Moreover, the vibe of Sunnydale had changed into something darker, his shifts at the hospital had become longer and filled with more dead bodies.

So tonight, when Ben went into the morgue, he kept his eyes open for every shifting shadow, for any unexpected movement. All the while his mind drifted to the large steel cabinets that stored the dead. He knew for a fact at least three bodies still remained in there. For safety reasons, the hospital staff has been incinerating any unclaimed bodies after their autopsy. Much to Ben's dismay, that meant the three corpses in front of him had been claimed, just not picked up yet. Too focused on the unmoving bodies, Ben didn't notice his client drop down with a light but audible thump, from a low window that sat just above the autopsy tables.

A smirk stretched on Spike's face as he watched the always smug Ben Wilkinson white-nuckle a bottle of holy water. Lazily, he decided to have some fun by swooping through the shadows unseen, until he was directly behind the boy, then he leaned in close enough so his breath, if he had any, would dance on Ben skin. All to rumble out, „Hello," which earned Spike a girlish shriek from the intern. The vampire let out a low chuckle, as Ben turned around and stumbled into the steel cabinet.

"Got the cash?" Ben grumbled like a whiny child.

"Getting thin skin, Benny boy." Spike remarked as he handed over the large wad of bills, courtesy of Hank Summers.

Still pouting, Ben refused to answer. Instead, he counted the cash, making sure the vampire didn't short him. Finding the money was all there, he gave the blood it bought. As Spike was leaving, Ben called after him, "You're gonna have to find a new blood guy."

Though Spike didn't need a blood guy anymore, he found himself still bagging it. Hank had been true to his word and Dr. Fleshing had removed the chip as soon as Spike handed him the card. The good doctor had even given Spike the first meal - a very pretty blonde that looked vaguely like the slayer. The girl had been a prostitute and tasted used to the vampire's tongue. Only the demon didn't care about that, he just wanted to hear her scream and she did, the moment Spike's fangs ripped into her flesh. He thought he would drink her dry after so long without fresh blood, but he couldn't. That wimpy, whiny poet in Spike's head begged him to stop. Ever so reluctantly, he did, dropping the half dead girl on the floor and storming out.

Since the blonde prostitute, Spike hadn't had a drop of fresh blood. He told himself that it was all part of his master plan to gain the trust of both Hank and the slayer so he could kill them once this no more slayers nonsense was over. _Besides, what's good about killing the slayer if there is no more to take her place? It just takes all the fun out of killing her._ Unfortunately, that meant he had to reign in his blood lust every second of every day, which was making him extra cranky.

Finally, his temper came to a boil when he stumbled on Buffy fighting a large horned demon that was three times her size. He was not going to save her right away, no. She had promised her watcher and friends that she would not patrol alone and there she was, with moonlight in her golden hair, swinging an axe, all by her lonesome. _The slayer is bloody mesmerizing to watch,_ Spike admired to himself while Buffy barely dodged a slash from the circular razors embedded into the arms of the demon. Waiting for the right moment to jump in, Spike placed the bags down. After a powerful backhand blow, the beast pinned Buffy against a nearby crypt wall, his razored forearm pushing beside her neck, only an inch away from slitting her throat. The slayer braced herself for imminent death, but it never came. She lifted her eyes to see a switchblade stuck to the hilt in the demon's own neck, black blood gushing out of the wound. Dying, the beast slowly melted, leaving the slayer to flop ungracefully to the ground.

Spike stared down into big green eyes that stared at the spot the demon had been occupying. He scolded, "Oi, do you have a bloody death wish, slayer?"

She looked into the green pool in front of her. Slowly, she picked herself up, brushing the grass and dirt off her clothes. Forlornly, she looked at Spike, "What the hell happened?" Carefully, she stepped around the puddle of goo, moving further into the cemetery.

Spike cursed under his breath as he picked up the bags of blood before he fell into step behind her. "You almost died," he grumbled, annoyed at the fact she was carelessly opening herself up to danger. Spike eyed the pouting slayer who was watching every shadow with weariness she had never showed before. He hated this affection he was starting to nurse for the slayer and now he couldn't even blame the chip for his feelings. He sighed with the need to talk to her, "What the bloody hell are you doing out here all alone, anyhow? Shouldn't you have one of your slayerettes watchin your back?"

More to herself, she moaned, "No, this isn't right!" A fresh patch of tears threatened to fall from her green eyes.

Uncertain of his next course of action, Spike looked around for something for them to kill. He hadn't seen her cry before and he found it unnerving. He sputter out, "What?"

"There was a time when killing a demon like that would have been a slow night for me. Now, I need my mortal enemy to save my life. What is the world coming to?" Buffy reminisced.

Spike shrugged in sympathy, "Yeah, well, welcome to my world, pet. There used to be a time when I could kill blokes like Captain Cardboard and the whelp in my sleep and now, well... I can't." It wasn't a lie. Spike told himself he couldn't just kill Riley or Xander right now. No matter how much he wanted to. _Their deaths would be noticed and it would hurt the slayer,_ Spike would remind himself every time Xander made a bad joke or Riley threatened him.

Spike was pulled from his musings when Buffy stopped walking and just stared at him, dumbfounded. Her eyes raked over his body until they finally settled on his eyes. The minutes ticked by in silence and Spike could not help but feel like those green eyes were weighting something in him. Suddenly, he was very grateful for the fact that Buffy did not have her powers. He was certain the slayer could see his alliance with Hank and she would stake him for it.

He stared back at her with false cockiness. Puffing out his chest, he reminded her, "What? I am evil after all."

Then the strangest thing happened. Buffy lunged herself into Spike's arms and wrapped herself around him like a blanket. He was stunned. A part of him relished in her warmth and longed to just pull her closer to his chest, to inhale the scent of her coconut shampoo. However, the larger part of him told Spike that a slayer snuggling in his arms was not a good thing and he should rip out her throat while he still could. Spike shifted away from the girl, "There, there, slayer…. Are you havin a mental breakdown or something 'cause the last time you acted all wonky, the first slayer tried to kill me. So…."

Buffy stared into his icy eyes, never realizing how beautiful they were until now, "I'm sorry. Last year I mocked you and... And I didn't realize or care that the Initiative put a chip in your brain that altered you in such way. Okay, I mean sure, it's a bad thing and you shouldn't kill anyone, but that's a part of your nature and now that you can't do it anymore must be making you feel so empty and alone. Me and the others just treated you so terribly… Okay, so yeah, you were kinda an ass, but still, you came to us for protection. I'm not making any kind of sense, am I?" Buffy groaned at Spike's sudden amusement at the situation.

He chuckled, "Yes, how the wheel has turned."

She shook her head, "God, this is just so wiggy. I am supposed to be the slayer, the girl that fights the darkness and you're supposed to be the Slayer of slayers, trying to kill me. Now, you can't hurt humans and I can't take out even fledglings. This is just wrong on so many levels."

Tenderly, Spike wiped a few stray tears away. "Maybe we could try not being those things for a while." Unwittingly, she closed her eyes and leaned into his touch. For a moment Spike wondered if he should confess everything and try to have an honest truce with Buffy, but then she looked at him more critically.

Buffy's eyes hardened into jade, "You're up to something. What is it?" The small window Spike thought he had to tell Buffy all his sins and be forgiven was slammed shut. He lowered his hand and fumbled awkwardly with his lighter.

"Didn't know saving your ungrateful arse was a sign of being up to no good." Spike made to stomp away but he couldn't help but chide, "You know, most people would say 'thanks for your help, how may I ever repay such a dashing vampire'."

"Well, maybe if you weren't a soulless evil thing, I would." Buffy sneered.

"Whatever, slayer." Spike rolled his eyes, storming away in the process.

Her feet stomped against the cemetery's ground, jogging after him. Half snarling, half yelling, Buffy spat, "No, you get back here right now! We're not finished!"

Spike stopped and put down his bags before stepping closer to the slayer, "What do you want from me?"

Buffy punched him in his nose, "Answers."

Spike grabbed his injured nose, doubling back, "Why are you being such a crazy bint?" Buffy hit him again, this time in the stomach. "What in the bloody hell was that for?" Spike groaned.

"You. You saved me from the first slayer. You've been patrolling around my house. Dawn and mom told me you were at the hospital every night when I was in that stupid coma thing." She put her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, and you want to know who wasn't at your bed side?" Spike paused for dramatic effect, as Buffy's gaze threatened to burn him alive. "Lover boy. Innit a bit odd, when you're down for the count, the man who claims to love you isn't there? Shouldn't you be breaking his nose and askin him why he's being so sodding shady?"

"Spike, stop avoiding the question," Buffy glared.

"What can I say, Slayer, maybe I just feel sorry for you." Spike answered, before smirking and leaning into Buffy's ear. Allowing himself to inhale the coconut shampoo and something else that was undeniably Buffy. Spike whispered, almost like a purr, "Or maybe I'm just bored." Buffy moved to slap him, but Spike grabbed her arm a little harder than needed. She tried to break away from his grasp, but he was too strong. _Kill her and be free,_ Spike's demon roared. Listening to the voice for a second, Spike's hand clutched around her throat. In one quick motion the slayer could be dead. Spike's angelic face shifted into his gnarled demonic mask.

Buffy stared into his golden eyes, refusing to scream. She made no move of resistance, as if she was ready for death.

"Go on. Do it." A small sad smile played on her face as she waited for Spike to kill her. He released the slayer's throat from his grasp only to pull her tiny body closer to his own, before devouring her mouth in a kiss. For a second Buffy was lost in the moment, enjoying herself, as she found herself deepening it.

Desperately, Spike's hands roamed over her body, enjoying her soft curves and warmth more than he would think possible. He unzipped Buffy's jeans, craving to plunge inside of her. Suddenly, Buffy whimpered, "No." Spike could smell how much she wanted him, yet her tiny hands pushed at him to get away. Unable and unwilling to harm her in any way, he released her.


	9. Blowing Snow

Blowing Snow

Chapter nine

A flurry of white fluffy powder ran up Hank's nose. He lay back, burrowing in the leather office chair, waiting for the jolt of electricity to pull him into reality. For a second, Hank closed his eyes, absently twisting his long, slender fingers in a mop of curly red hair that was bobbing between his legs. The girl currently servicing Hank was barely legal, with legs going on for days and a mouth like a Hoover vacuum. Feeling the familiar breathlessness that accompanied the pleasure that came from the working girl's talented tongue, he sucked in a breath, giving himself over to bliss. She could taste the bitter tang of Hank's cum pouring down her throat. Nearly gagging the girl, Hank pushed his cock deeper down her throat as he erupted.

He was unable to bathe in the afterglow of his conquest as the steel doors of his office swung open, revealing an enraged Spike holding a briefcase in one hand while the other held the dripping head of a gargoyle's demon. Spike stormed deeper into the room, leaving a trail of green blood behind him

Hank groaned at the punk rock vampire as he removed his softened cock from the young lady's mouth. "Well, Masha, my five o'clock is here. I'm going to have to ask you to leave." Hank explained to the girl as he zipped up his suit pants.

She got to her feet, adjusting her Catholic schoolgirl costume. "Hank, of course. Same time tomorrow?" She smoothed down her hair before retrieving a red lip gloss from the pocket in her skirt. Freshening up her lip shine, she shot a teasing smile towards the vampire.

"No, I am afraid I have to cancel, I have another engagement with the ex-wife and my daughters." Hank answered.

"Oh drat, however will I fill this opening?" Masha mocked, before sauntering over to Spike and slipping a business card into his pants pocket. "Call me." she purred with a flirty smile.

"Payment's with Ann up front, young lady," Hank instructed with fake jealousy in his voice. Once the girl cleared from the room, Hank turned to Spike, "All you had to do was hand the briefcase to Mr. Mulls. What could've possibly provoked you to rip off his head?"

"He pissed me off." Spike tossed the head on the mahogany desk, inwardly recalling Mr. Mulls' accusations that William the Bloody had lost his bite. "All you said was to make sure he doesn't show up tonight. He's not going to show up anywhere now." Spike smirked, placing the briefcase on the desk as well.

"Did you fuck up anything else?" Hank sighed.

"Your daughter is a pain in the arse." Spike spat.

"What did you do?" The older man glared at him. "You didn't kill her, did you?"

"Me? I did nothing! She's the one who loves to play kick the Spike. Well, now I kick back." Spike sneered at the memory of last night's encounter at the cemetery. He could still feel the warmth of the Slayer's body and taste the sweetness of her mouth. "Should've just killed the bitch."

Hank closed his eyes, remembering Buffy not as the warrior but as the little girl who used to watch Barney and fall asleep in his lap. "What does she know?" Hank growled. His job made it hard to be around Buffy, the senior partners didn't like his involvement with the Slayer so he had to cut all ties with her. It had been with the strictest understanding the Slayer was not long for this world that Hank was permitted to spend time with his daughter.

"She knows I'm not fangless anymore." The demon's bloodlust roared at Spike for not taking his opportunity. She had been begging for it. _Why did I fucking let her go?! Now her and her little friends are going to try to put me out to pasture._ The thing was, Buffy hadn't, a whole twenty four hours later and she had made no move against Spike.

Hank closed his hazel eyes, calculating the odds of his daughter trying to kill his newest lackey. "Okay, so she doesn't have that Slayer spark, right... no magical solutions yet?"

Spike lit a cigarette, trying to hide his worry for the girl, "Yeah and it's drivin' her batty. She almost offed herself last night trying to fight a Cheweo Demon."

Hank nodded, "Okay, you need to talk to her."

Spike nearly dropped his cigarette, "Bugger that, the Slayer and her groupies will dust me before I say the first syllable!"

Hank shook his head. "Clearly, she hasn't tried to kill you yet."

Spike puffed out a line of smoke, "Yeah, because the bint isn't stupid. She's waiting for the right time."

Hank comforted the vampire, "You're right, Spike, Buffy's not stupid. She's not going to kill you because she can't right now. She just doesn't have the power. Hell, most likely she kept her mouth shut about the whole chip things so none of her friends do something stupid." Hank snorted another line of cocaine, this time feeling instantly energized. "If she did tell anyone, it would be Angel, but, seeing how he's not here with a piece of pointy wood, I think you're safe." Hank thought about taking another hit, but instead offered some to Spike.

The vampire shook his head, "No, I get all blood thirsty on it. Anything else I need to do before I go talk to the Slayer?"

Hank's eyes were bloodshot, "Did my holy man arrive yet?"

"Yep, hanging in your basement" Spike explained before adding. "Oh yeah, the future Mrs. Summer said to stop bringing your work home."

Hank's red Mercedes skated passed the wild brush and witherd grape vines of a Tuscany Vineyard. The vineyard lazily sat unused in the moonlight shifting the once pristine lime stones of the old manner into cracked smoker's teeth. Despite all appearances powerful magics rested in the vineyard grounds. It was the kind of magic that was used by the old gods before the earth was tamed by the Slayer.

Soon the little mercedes had stopped outside a pair of large stained glass doors that led to the formally grand manner of the Vineyard. Hank stepped out of the car relishing in the taste of magic that hung in the polluted air. Hank had send his human assistants a head to make the building useable for the Council of Demonic and Supernatural Affairs (CDSA). The Organization was a sort of U.N for the Supernatual worlds. Only instead of countries it was run by six powerful families made up of: Elfs, Mystics, Skin Changers, Vampires, Banshees, and Gargoyles. The families only came together on matters that affected the natural order of reality. Tonight they needed to come to an agreement on the matter regarding the Slayers life. Given the gravity of the CDSA's proceedings Wilferm and Hart had chosen to get involved by sending Hank Summers, a senior partner, to mediated.

Much to Hank's dismay he had to host the proceedings. Never knowing which family was at the others throat he hand picked a location that still followed the Hospitality Laws of the old Gods. The laws stated that any creature that dined underneath the sanctuary's roof may not come to any harm; as long as it remained on the sanctuary grounds. This had led Hank to the vineyard outside of Sunnydale. Before the vineyard had fallen in to disrepair it had been a sanctuary of sorts.

Hank Summers, had setup a make shift conference room in one of the larger wine cellars. One by one, the members of the CDSA filed into the cellars sitting at a table made out of stone, except for one, a Gargoyle called Sammual Mulls. One of the members of the CDSA, Lore, a blue a skin hermaphrodite, that led the banshees, demanded for the CDSA to wait for Mull's arrival. When no one else agreed with him, Hank started the meeting by giving each member a bit of bread and a sip of wine to activate the sanctuary's magic.

Hank started the debate, "We have come here today to discuss the ending of an era. After this last Slayer dies, no more will rise to challenge us, so the question is simple, do we want to speed up the process of her death?" The years of practiced indifference made every word that fell from his lips cold. It was as if the subject of his daughter's possible death was as meaningless as which movie to watch or what tie he should wear to work.

Lore was the first to slam his point home. "Right now, the Slayer is weak and it would take little energy to rid ourselves of this enemy. My only question to my brave friends of the Council why has this not happened yet?" Cheering Lore on was a short but muscular Skin Changer and a vampire that looked like he would be more at home on Wall Street than a graveyard.

On the other side of the argument was Ella a sky Elf who seemed to be an enchantress that stepped out of a fairytale. Ella addressed the CDSA like a queen to her court, "Lore is a relic of the past. His whole race are creatures of war and destruction with no real power in this new world. Why should we listen to him? Killing the Slayer would throw our world out of whack and will destroy everything. Right now we can live in riches on the back of mankind. Why should we ruin this for ourselves? If anything we should help the Slayer for a price." One cheer came from a Mystic but other than that the room fell quiet.

Lore scoffed, "You should not even be here. You're a fairy and have no place in this world."

Ella spoke over him, "My kingdom is richer and stronger than yours, if anyone should not be here it is you."

The Vampire Russell Edgington spoke in a thick southern draw that postdated his turning, "Silence, both of you. I agree with Lore that we need to destroy our enemy while she is weak. Pretty soon she will find a way to reclaim her birth right and set the balance back to normal. We have a once in a life time chance to fix things in our favor. Why waste it. "

Ella tried to explain, without sounding like a human sympathizer, "The balance protects us all, without it we would be destroyed."

Lore answers, "What do we care of the balance? Fuck the balance! What has it ever given us? We have hidden away in holes while the Slayer hunts our kind like dogs. We are better than the humans in every way and yet we live under them. How is that right?"

From nowhere someone started to clap sardonically. Drusilla and Darla appeared from the shadows. Darla smirked to her grandchild, "Look, the party started without us. How rude".

Drusilla floats around the cellar listening to the whispering stars. She answers Darla with a Cheshire grin, "Yes grandmamma, very rude, indeed."

Lore whines, "I thought the prize Daughter of Aurulus Line was dead."

Hank Summers finally weighs in, "Ladies, please, this meeting is for CDSA members only. If you have opinions in this matter you must take it up with the local Vampire Sheriff of your area."

Darla sneers at the CDSA, "Vampire Sheriff? I'm the fucking master of Aurailen! I don't report to any the Lithian of the Vampire Authority."

"Darling I think your brief stint with death made you forget a few things, like who won the FUCKIN war." Russell mocks.

Darla, readying a reply, was cut off by the Skin Changer. The Skin Changer glares, "Can some one just kill her again and be done with it? We have important matters to discuss."

Hank huffed inwardly cursing Lindsey and Lilia for their gross incopatence. "Darla has been brought back to life to help us with a problem in L.A so no one gets to harm her save Angelus."

Darla shot back to the CDSA, "Drusilla and I haven't come here to fight. We are here with information."

Ella attempts to shoe them away, "There more than enough vampires here; can we please, just stake them and be done with it. I'm sure the sanctuary's magic doesn't apply to them."

Russell stops Ella from making a move on the two vampires, "Despite the bad blood between my clan and hers; they are still vampires, and thereby under my protection, so threatening them is like threatening me." His long fangs promised a quick death to the Elf.

The mystic nods, trying to pull the debate back to its point, "Go on my dears. Your maker was once a good friend to me. I promised to keep an eye on his children so you will not be harmed here. So tell us of the future comings."

Darla turns to Drusilla, "Go on Dru baby; tell them what you told me."

Drusilla closed her eyes:

"Shadows dance high above

Devouring Sunshine's only light

Leaving monsters night"

Drusilla opens her eyes again shocked at the stars:

"Only night says goodbye

When fire and blood stains little Alice

Quickly power comes"

Tears fall down Drusilla's cheek, "Alice has stolen my white rabbit."

Annoyances slips into Darla's voice "No, the other thing."

Wiping away the tears Drusilla nods, "Stars whisper in my head, they tell me the Slayer will grow old but never age."

Ella sights, "I don't care what some mad woman has to say. You have the Elf's vote we will not murder the Slayer." Ella left the winery

Russell growls, "Translate her ramblings Darla before the lords and ladies grow tire of this folly."

Darla smiles, "It's simple really. According to Dru somehow the Slayer will be turned and the only thing worse than a Slayer is one batting for the other team. So I am here to warn you all leave the Slayer alone."

Lore shouts, "This is nonsense we can kill the Slayer before it happens."

Dru shakes her head, "Silly little, man woman beast you will fail."

The mystic smiles gently at the girls, "Leave us my dears and we will talk over everything you have told us."

Half Trues Whole Lie

Chapter ten

With no further questions from Hank, Spike journeyed to Buffy's place on foot. The trip was short but the night itself was late, Buffy had just returned to her mother's home from a fruitless patrol with her guard dog, Riley, at her side. _Seems the pillock can be bothered to get away from between his whore's legs and help his girlfriend after all._ From the deep dusky shadows of the large oak tree, Spike observed the awkward goodbye with some fascination. Riley was attempting to enter the Summers' residence while Buffy was doing everything in her power to keep him out, save from actually pushing him off the porch. Riley wrapped one of his large arms around her and devoured her mouth in a long wet kiss. Spike growled at this show and wondered if he should roll from the shadows, announcing his presence. He briefly considered telling the Slayer about Riley's claim while clobbering the boy. He figured that wouldn't go over too well so he decided to keep his mouth shut, this time. After all, the Slayer had broken the kiss and seemed to be uninterested in Riley's advances.

Riley pushed Buffy against the mahogany door possessively, clasping her waist with force, pinning her to the spot. He pushed his erection into her stomach before he dove in for another kiss. Buffy tried to push him away, suddenly feeling claustrophobic in his embrace. "Let me go," She hissed.

He kept his hold firm on her as Buffy's hands, flat against his chest, were trying to shove him off. For once, with Buffy, he was the stronger one and he could take what he wanted. For a second he thought about doing just that. He pulled himself up to his full height and loomed over her. Only the fierce look in Buffy's eyes had him stepping back, releasing his hold. His shoulders' slumped back and he put his puppy dog eyes on. "Right... Goodnight."

Once the door was firmly slammed in Riley's face, Spike clapped sardonically, stepping out from the shadows. "That was brilliant, I thought you really had a shot there with that doe eye thing you did at the end." He eyed Riley, wondering if Buffy had said anything about his dechipping.

Riley glared at the vampire. Sasha's taunt about his girlfriend being lovers with the bleach vampire nagged at his thoughts. "Now, what possible purpose could you have for being here, Spike?" He was ready to knock Spike's lights out and stake him.

Either the boy lacks sense of self-preservation or she hadn't said a word. A wicked glee jumped into Spike's blue eyes. He curled his tongue behind his teeth, "So, trouble in paradise, then?" He was trying to rile the soldier up so he would make a move. _Come on, hit me, boy. There's no way you're stupid enough to hit me if she told you. So do it._

Riley snarled, "Not an answer, Spike."

Spike shrugged, "Isn't your mate going to be pissed about you steppin out like this. Not that the Slayer's puttin out or anything. Tell me, do either of them know about the other?"

Riley turned ghost pale instantly, balling his fist into Spike's black T-shirt. He narrowed his eyes, "How do you know that? Did Sasha tell you?"

She didn't tell him. He couldn't help but laugh and smile, "No, but you did. Tell me, Captain Cardboard, did the Slayer stop putting out before or after you got yourself claimed."

Riley punched Spike hard, landing the vampire on the ground. Spike leaped to his feet, jazzed to put the soldier in his place. "So it was before." He taunted.

Once again Riley swung to hit Spike but the vampire dodged, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Perhaps the Slayer wants a real man between her legs and you're just ill equipped." Riley sent a punch into Spike stomach. The vampire doubled over a little. He shot into game face, ready to indulge in some violence, but the flicking of the light on in Buffy's room reminded him of his quest. Internally, he cursed and shouted at Hank and Buffy, as his human face resumed its place. Spike spat, "Touched a nerve there, did I?"

Riley folded his arms, wondering why he just didn't stake Spike. "Again I feel the need to ask why you are here, Spike. And make it short."

Lighting a cigarette, Spike stepped smoke emphasized every word. "None of your business," he took a long drag. "Prick." The vampire exhaled the smoke right into Riley's face.

"It's like you want me to hit you." The soldier let his anger simmer.

The porch light buzzed to life and the front door swung open to reveal a pissed off Slayer on the other side. Her eyes shot between Spike and Riley, both trying to stare the other down. "If you two are going to do this male pissing contest thing, then could you at least not do it on my front lawn? It's bad for the grass." Buffy quipped, her hand on her hip and her head tilted to one side.

Riley gave a goofy grin, "Sorry. We did not mean to disturb you." Quickly, he put on his mask of innocence and hurriedly scrambled towards the girl.

Spike mocked, "Not true. Definitely came here to be a disturbance and to be an all-around nuisance." He sauntered to the porch as well.

Buffy gave a little huff of annoyance with Spike, "Then you have done your job well, Spike. You can go home now." She pushed passed Riley to get a better focus on Spike's movements.

Lovingly, Riley grabbed Buffy from behind, grinding against her while smugly staring down the vampire. Only Buffy seemed to flinch away from the soldier's touch as his arm caged around her small form. "Yeah, Spike, go home." Riley nipped at her ear.

Spike took another drag of his cigarette while Buffy whirled on Riley, "One - don't do that. Two... " She quickly untangled herself from his too warm arms. "You don't have touching privileges anymore."

"Oooh did someone get caught between someone else's legs?" Spike leered.

Riley stepped away from Buffy. _Is she fucking him?_ Soon he was glaring menacingly at the vampire, "Fine. I'll take care of Spike for you." Not even looking at her, he ordered, "Go back inside, Buffy."

"Oh you are not ordering me around." The girl folded her arms in outrage.

Spike mocked, "Yes, I think he is. Get'm, Slayer."

Groaning in exasperation, Riley whined, "Buffy, I didn't mean it like that. I just love you and want to help."

"Are you going to have a little domestic on the front lawn?" Spike piped in yet again,

Buffy huffed, "Riley, go home. I can handle Spike on my own."

He looked between the two warriors, shaking his head. "Fine. I'll go. Before I do, tell me, does it take being undead to have a real shot with you?"

Buffy frowned, "Go home, Riley."

No more words needing to be said, Riley stomped off.

Buffy turned her attention to Spike. "What do you want?"

Spike snuffed out his cigarette under his boot. "So, what was that about?"

"Spike. Answers. Now! Why are you here?" The slayer nearly growled.

He pushed pass Buffy, testing the barrier. Finding none, he stepped inside, looking around the house in wonder. He looked out the door at Buffy. "Not as interested in Joe normal now that you have to play Jane normal, are you?" Buffy rolled her eyes and followed Spike inside her home, shutting the door behind her.

She didn't say anything to his earlier statement. "What is this, Spike? You're off your leash and you haven't made a move." Buffy demanded, pursing her lips and unintentionally tempting the vampire in front of her doing so.

Spike nodded, trying to block all thoughts of Buffy's soft pink lips out of his mind. "Neither have you," He pointed out.

Buffy remained silent for a while. "Didn't want them to worry." It was an honest answer.

Every time Buffy was on patrol, Riley and the gang had been with her. If she told anyone about Spike, she would have to confess she'd been out there alone. That would lead to concern. _Concern will turn into questions. And then I'll have to come up with clever lies about Spike and me. Me and Spike… whatever we are, it is a whole mess of strangling and kissing._ A blush stained Buffy's cheeks as she remembered how good his lips felt massaging hers.

A strong British accent cut through her thoughts. Spike seemed to study her like a painting, "About your death wish or about me?" He recalled those desperate words she had whispered, 'Go on. Do it', before he had given to his desire to kiss her.

Stubbornly, Buffy claimed, "I don't have a death wish."

Spike laughed, "Luv, sayin' you don't have a death wish, is like sayin' 'Peaches isn't a broody git'."

Nearly growling at Spike, Buffy closed her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Are you going to start trouble in my town or not? Because I have more than enough to worry about with Riley trying to play Captain America with his little retired army pals and you know just being Buffy the spark-less slayer."

Spike's eyes widened and his mouth dropped, "The Initiative is back?"

Seeing the look of panic in Spike's face, Buffy found herself comforting the vampire, "Just the commandos and not officially." He could see the sympathy in her eyes, but it couldn't make him believe her words.

Spike's voice jumped five octaves, "Yeah and I was sired yesterday!" Buffy had the sudden urge to pull him close and wipe away his panic.

She refrained herself from, choosing to remind him, "Even if the scientist guys are here, they're not going to bother you because of the chip." Spike gave her a look that screamed 'you're an idiot', and she rolled her eyes at him.

The chip was the reason they were even talking. _Good going Buffy, way to forget that he's dangerous. Add that one to the 101 list of reason's why Buffy sucks at being the Slayer._ She explained calmly, "You can leave town... I'm not gonna tell anyone about the chip." She regretted saying those words as soon as they left her mouth. Spike could kill me right now and no one would be the wiser.

He closed the gap between them, touching her face, "And why would you do that, luv?" His tender manner had her pondering the question, inhaling the smell of leather and second hand smoke that seemed to roll off of him.

She picked her words carefully, "Because what they did to you was wrong." Surprisingly, Buffy found herself not wanting him to go. Yet, she found herself saying, "You should leave, Spike. I can't fight you right now. "

"No, you can't." Spike conceded her point, and daringly, he kissed Buffy's pink lips that tasted like honeysuckle. He broke the kiss, his voice husky and low. "But I'm not leaving." Once again he dived in for a kiss that sang with unconcealed passion.

"What the hell, Spike," Buffy broke the kiss as if she just remembered she wasn't supposed to be kissing her mortal enemy.

"Come on, luv, you want more." Spike knew he would stay, even if he was free from his contract with Hank. Even if Buffy rechipped him herself, the vampire would not leave Sunnydale.

She huffed, "No, I don't." She lied, hating the fact those handful of kisses with Spike had made her feel more loved than hundreds of the ones she shared with Riley. "What is this, Spike?" She backed away, always looking for an escape.

Spike gave her room to move. Buffy was uncertain about this new development between them and he didn't want to spook her. He could tell she wanted him. The smell of her sex on overdrive gave away her desire for him. It made him salivate. "I don't know, but I love you."

"Spike, you can't possibly... you don't have a soul." Buffy brushed a hand through her hair, nervous by Spike's declaration. Then she looked at him very seriously, "You're soulless and don't have a chip so what's going to stop you from killing?"

"You. I'm willing to be good for you." He answered. She looked entirely unconvinced, so he went on, "The chip's been out for a whole month. I haven't killed anyone. No soul, no chip - just pure will power. So please, give me a chance."

"A whole month, huh? So you got the chip out before or after my visit with the ghost of Slayers past?" She looked hard at him as if she still had the power to slay him with the flip of her wrist.

 _I should tell her right now about Hank. She should know. What if he's behind this whole thing._ The words hung in his throat. _'Buffy, love your da got the chip out in order to get me on his side.'_ Only he couldn't say it. He imagined the Slayer either laughing at him or she would storm into the lion's dim to confront Hank. _Either way this small crumb of her trust would be gone._ "After. A demon came to me and offered to remove the chip if I spied on you for him. But once he took it out, I killed him." It was a half-truth, one he needed her to believe. "I want to fight beside you."

"I don't love you. I barely like you. And I have a boyfriend. I might be pissed at him for going behind my back and unofficially bringing back the Initiative, but I care for him and don't cheat." Buffy wanted to be clear. "So if you're not killing to get me in bed, it's not going to work. You should just get out town while you can."

Spike nodded, "Okay, duly noted. But I am not leaving while you're all power down girl."

Buffy knew she wasn't going to get rid of the bleach blonde menace. "Fine. Here's the deal, Spike. I am going to keep my mouth shut about the chip, but if you screw up and kill anyone in my town, I will find away to dust you with or without my powers."

Spike smirked, "Alright love."

Buffy narrowed her eyes questions bubbling in her head. "This demon guy that took out the chip did he say why he wanted you to spy on me."

Spike couldn't help the grimace on his lips. He couldn't out and out lie but Hank's involvement in this operpation needed to be kept on the down low. "He just told me to spy on you. Figured there was some nasty reason behind it and didn't ask questions."

Buffy bit her lip, "Okay so he must of had a reason for spying on me. I mean you don't just go up to someone and say Hey go do the 007 thing, without a reason right?"

Hank had hired Spike for a reason and the more he got to know Hank the more skeptical he became about the lawyer's attentions. Spike shrugged, "Got a point there but we didn't really get into the whys."

"Ok... you killed this demon guy as soon as you got the chip out and that was it? No one else has tried to come after you for some pay back or ask you about me?" Slayer gave him a hard look demanding answers.

"What can I tell you its been all quiet on the Slaying front." Spike huffed. "So unless you have anything else you need. I should be heading off now."

Buffy nodded, "Right... hmmm Last night before the whole demon attack and chip not working thing. I was actually looking for you. Giles is in London right now."

Spike scoffed, "Yeah think he's mention going back to the land Tweed and crumpance for a while now. What's your point?"

Buffy glared, "Well he called last night he wanted me and you to check out some Demon called the Librarian. He's some Leechy demon."

Spike smirked, "You mean LeeAsh. And I've heard of the Pillock owe's me about twenty quint from last weeks poker game at Willy's. What does the Watcher want with him?"

Buffy sighed, "What do all Watcher's want. Books. This guy has the skinny on all thing's Tatamy. And Giles wants us to collect the information from him."

Spike rolled his shoulders back, "Alright. I'll find him for you."


	10. Sympathy for the Devil

Sympathy for the Devil

Chapter ten

Hank's red Mercedes skated past the wild brush and withered grape vines of a Tuscany style vineyard. The vineyard sat lazily unused in the moonlight, shifting the once pristine lime stones of the old manner into cracked smoker's teeth. Despite all appearances, powerful magic rested in the vineyard grounds. It was the kind of magic that was used by the old gods before the earth was tamed by the Slayer.

Soon the little Mercedes stopped outside of a pair of large stained glass doors that led to the formally grand manor of the vineyard. Hank stepped out of the car, relishing in the taste of magic that hung in the polluted air. He had sent his human assistants ahead to make the building useable for the Council of Demonic and Supernatural Affairs (CDSA). The Organization was a sort of U.N for the Supernatural worlds. Only, instead of countries it was run by six powerful families made up of Elves, Mystics, Skin Changers, Vampires, Banshees, and Gargoyles. The families only came together on matters that affected the natural order of reality. Tonight they needed to come to an agreement on the matter regarding the Slayer's life. Given the gravity of the CDSA's proceedings, Wolfram and Hart had chosen to get involved by sending Hank Summers to mediate.

Much to his dismay, that met he was the one who had to host the proceedings. Never knowing which family was at the other's throat, he handpicked a location that still followed the hospitality laws of the old Gods. Those stated that any creature that dined underneath the sanctuary's roof may not come to any harm as long as it remained on the grounds. This had led Hank to the vineyard outside of Sunnydale. Before the vineyard had fallen into disrepair, it had been a sanctuary of sorts.

Hank Summers had setup a makeshift conference room in one of the larger wine cellars. One by one, the members of the CDSA filed into it and sat at a table made of stone, except for one, a Gargoyle called Samuel Mulls. One of the members of the CDSA, Lore, a blue-skinned hermaphrodite that led the banshees, demanded for the CDSA to wait for Mull's arrival. When no one else agreed with him, Hank started the meeting by giving each member a bit of bread and a sip of wine to activate the sanctuary's magic.

Hank started the debate, "We have come here today to discuss the ending of an era. After this last Slayer dies, no more will rise to challenge us. So the question is simple - do we want to speed up the process of her death?" The years of practiced indifference made every word that fell from his lips sound cold. It was as if the subject of his daughter's possible death was as meaningless as what movie to watch or which tie he should wear to work.

Lore was the first to slam his point home. His voice was a metallic kind of garble that bounced off the cellar walls, "Why does there even need to be a debate! Right now the Slayer is weak and it would take little energy to rid ourselves of this enemy. My only question to my brave friends of the Council is why has this not happened yet?" Cheering Lore on were a short but muscular skin changer and a vampire that looked like he would be more at home on Wall Street than at a graveyard.

On the other side of the argument was Ella Snow, a slender Elf with pointed ear's and eye's that were like tar pits. Everything about her could be drawn from a fairytale. Often times Hank couldn't help but imagine her as Snow White's evil step mother before she turned into an ugly hag. Just like the evil step mother Ella was an enchantress able to sway hearts and minds of men with a whispered word or soft caress of her milky white hands. The soft melody of her voice danced on ears of the CDSA drawing every eye on her. Ella addressed the CDSA, like a queen would speak to her court, "Lore is a relic of the past. His whole race is creatures of war and destruction, with no real power in this new world. Why should we listen to him? Killing the Slayer would throw our world out of whack and will destroy everything. Right now we can live in riches on the back of mankind. Why should we ruin this for ourselves? If anything, we should help the Slayer for a price."

One cheer came from a Mystic but other than that the room fell quiet. This isn't good, Hank internally winced while his mask of absolute disinterest stayed locked on his face. Unwilling to let the subject drop the Mystic spoke up, "My dear lady Ella is right. To truly destroy the world and bring back the old ways it must be done in stages. Killing the Slayer is too drastic for this point in time. A drastic shift in the balance like that will only serve to for nature violently try to right its self. However if we currupt the Slayer the balance can be tilted to our side and slowly we can bring back the Old ones."

"In my day humans like you would be belly up on the table while the Lords of the CDSA carved into you. Lore's scoffed, "Ask for Lady Ella she should not even be here. You're a step below half-breads and have no place in this world."

Ella spoke over him, "You and me having this conversation would be funny if you weren't so pathetic. Just look at you sitting there worshiping the old ways of blood and carnage expecting some gods that either have abandon your kind or never existed in the first place to come put me and anyone else with a spec of human in them in our place. All while your kinsman live off of rats underground unable to come to the surface all because humans walk the earth. The only reason you have a spot at this table is because someone way back when spilled enough blood to get you here. Don't talk like your opinions matter because they don't. Now go back to your whole and let your kind die out like your gods."

Lore hop from his spot slamming his fist into the table nearly cracking it in his furry. "Be greatful for my devotion to the old ways Elf it is the only thing keeping you alive."

The vampire Cyrus spoke in a thick southern draw, that postdated his turning, "Silence, both of you. I agree with Lore that we need to destroy our enemy while she is weak. Pretty soon she will find a way to reclaim her birth right and set the balance back to normal. We have a once in a lifetime chance to fix things in our favor. Why waste it? "

Ella tried to explain, without sounding like a human sympathizer, "The balance protects us all, without it, we would be destroyed."

"What do we care of the balance? Fuck the balance! What has it ever given us? We have hidden away in holes while the Slayer hunts our kind like dogs. We are better than the humans in every way and yet we live under them. How is that right?" A skin changer called Bear, roared his disapproval.

Hank decided to weigh in to the discussion. "Please Ladies and Gentleman we all have the same desires here. We want the old ways of the world back. The Slayer has always stood in the way of that. Now this force of good is weak. We can kill her or currupt her both options will serve us well. But if we kill her and somehow nature finds away to fix the absence of Slayer than that's it. We will have to look for a new weakness in this new warrior of light. However if we keep this Slayer around slowly curropt her than she might just do the hard work of bringing about the end of days for us."

Lore narrowed his yellow eyes at the Lawyer. "So your saying the Slayer can be currupted by the darkness and she can destroy the world."

Hank smiled, "Yes anyone can be currupted, Lore. Even a child of light. You just need to know what buttons to push."

Lore snarled, "Your interest in keeping her alive has nothing to do with her relation to you?"

Hank heaved out a sigh, "If the CDSA chooses to cut out her heart and feed it too me, I'll do the cutting myself and eat it with a smile on my face. The Slayer is nothing more than a means to an end."

Lore laughed, "I don't believe you."

From nowhere, someone started to clap sardonically. Drusilla and Lylia appeared from the shadows. Lylia smirked to Hank, " "Hank how rude of you not to wait for us."

Drusilla floated around the cellar, listening to the whispering stars. "Yes, very rude, indeed." answered with a cheshire grin.

Lore whined, "I thought the mad seer was dead."

Hank Summers finally weighted in, "Ladies, please, this meeting is for CDSA members only."

Lylia smiled wide, "You're right Hank. I am deeply sorry for the interruption but you see when I was consulting Drusilla on another case she had a vision about this troubling Slayer business." Pointly she looked toward Hank, "You see Ladies and Gentleman Wilfirm and Heart want's to do what is best for the CDSA despite any personal liabilities. So in the interest of the CDSA I just had to bring Drusilla into town."

Mask's firmly in place Hank nodded, "Is that right Lylia. Well this must be a tasty bit of prophecy for you to risk your career for."

Lylia cooly replied, "Oh trust me Hank. I think you're goanna find this very enlightening ."

Ella attempts to shoe them away, "Can't we just get rid of them? I'm sure the sanctuary's magic doesn't apply to them."

The mystic nods, trying to pull the debate back to its point, "Go on my dears. Tell us of the future comings."

Lylia turns to Drusilla, "Go on; tell them what you told me."

Drusilla closed her eyes:

"Shadows dance high above

Devouring Sunshine's only light

Leaving monsters night"

Drusilla opens her eyes again shocked at the stars:

"Only night says goodbye

When fire and blood stains little Alice

Quickly power comes"

Tears fall down Drusilla's cheek, "Alice has stolen my white rabbit."

Annoyances slips into Lylia voice "No, the other thing."

Wiping away the tears Drusilla nods, "Stars whisper in my head, they tell me the Slayer will grow old but never age."

Ella sights, "I don't care what some mad woman has to say. You have the Elf's vote we will not murder the Slayer." Ella left the winery

Hank growls, "Translate her ramblings Lylia before the lords and ladies grow tire of this folly."

Lylia smiles, "It's simple really. According to Drusilla somehow the Slayer will be turned and the only thing worse than a Slayer is one batting for the other team."

Lore shouts, "This is nonsense we can kill the Slayer before it happens."

Dru shakes her head, "Silly little, man woman beast you will fail."

Cyrus yawns, "Let's put it to a vote before sun rise. All for Killing the Slayer say aye."

Remains of CDSA voted yes on the Slayers death and one by one they filed out of the Cellar until Lylia, Drusilla, and Hank were alone. In flash Hank's smooth hands were around Lylia's neck. "You aren't supposed to be here!"

Lylia gave a smirk as she croaked, "And you aren't suppose to have a daughter who's a slayer. I wonder how the senior partners are gonna feel about that?"

A dry cruel laugh echoed from cellar walls. "You do realize my daughter's identify is the worse kept secret in the underworld right? But you want to know the best kept secret?" Hank leaned in close and whispered in her hear. The warm breath smelt like rotten meat and his touch became like lava burning Lylia skin. "I am a senior partner."


	11. A Bloke's Favorite Chew Toy

A Bloke's favorite Chew Toy

Chapter Eleven

Willow and Buffy sat outside the Espresso Pump with their respective ice-creamy coffee confections in hand. Willow was speaking animatedly about next semester, her voice a chirp of excitement that Buffy couldn't bring herself to match. On August 27th the girls would be going back to college. That was barely two weeks away and there were still no results with her slayer problem. Giles was still across the pond and the lead on the librarian turned into a dead end much to the Slayer's dismay. Spike had come through for her, delivering a black and blue demon to the Scooby hang out, only for the demon to know nothing at all.

The Slayer sipped her coffee treat with growing sense of unease. Despite Willow's need to distract Buffy from her slayer life with the normal, everyday things, it was to know no avail. Her mind kept drifting away to the millions of problems circling her life. A pit of paranoia latched onto her consciousness, forcing her to be on edge every second of every day. She couldn't help the nagging in the back of her skull that screamed, even in the light of day, that she was being hunted. With a slurp of her drink Buffy huffed to herself, _When did the world turn upside down? I'm all with the jumpiness, my mortal enemy is in love with me and my perfect human boyfriend is all avoidy guy! What's wrong with the world?_ She stirred her coffee, finally feeling the burn of Willow's eyes on her. _Shoot! Willow has disappointed face which means I wasn't listening, again._

Mid Slayer musing Willow teased, "I think I'm going to shave half my head, then dye the other half radioactive purple, and wear nothing but mayo to the Bronze tonight." The glazed look in Buffy's eyes did not ebb so Willow tapped her shoulder. When Buffy flickered back into reality, Willow smiled and asked, "What do you think, Buffy?"

The blonde blinked at Willow's mocking look, wondering what she wanted. Carefully, she traced the thread of the conversation back to where she last remembered it going. Uncertainly, the Slayer offered her generic support, "Umm… Uh… I think either computer science or physics would be lucky to have you."

A sheepish smile graced Buffy's lips. She couldn't help but shrink under Willow's narrowed eyes. "You haven't been listening for the last twenty minutes. So spill, what's got you all gloomy girl today? Is it Slayer related or Hank/Riley related?"

 _How do you say that your mortal enemy is making with the kissage and loviness while my boyfriend is making with the sulky stretchiness. And it's got you all confused. Oh, oh and if that wasn't complicated enough, I'm like 90% sure there's something following me!_ Buffy groaned with her inner monologue before addressing Willow, "Both… neither… I don't know! It's... just ummm complicated and completely bizarre." She heaved out a sigh. "You know how Riley's been distant lately and Spike has been all with the helping?"

The bottom drop out of Willow's stomach. Her brain tracked the direction this conversation was headed. She braced herself for Buffy's confession, certain that Spike was now going to be the seventh member of their little group. "Yeah…" Careful not to sound judgmental, Willow added, "Sp-spike isn't that bad you… know. I mean hey… it's not like he has a soul to lose, just a chip. And he was devoted to Drusilla for what, over 100 years, so you know, he's the kinda guy—"

Buffy looked at her friend strangely, "Willow, where are you going with this?"

The redhead rambled, "I'm just saying, if you two were to hook up... I mean it's totally not a big deal if you have, but I'm just saying I—I uh support you. I think in his twisted way he could care about you. Rile—"

Buffy laugh, "You're joking, right?"

Willow let out a breath, "What?"

Buffy sighed, "Me and Spike have not and will not hook up." Then she looked down at her cup.

Willow looked sternly at the Slayer who was doing her best to stare into the melting slush of her coffee. "Buffy?" she asked in that best friend way where they knew something was up but each wanted the other one to say it first.

Looking into Willow's eyes, Buffy reluctantly admitted to last week's encounter with Spike. "There might have been some light kissage with him but nothing else." Buffy blushed. "It's just… Riley has been so distant lately. I think he's hiding something from me and… I think... he likes the fact that I don't have my powers anymore. It would explain why he's been less than helpful lately."

Grimacing, Willow asked, "Have you talked to him?"

Buffy bit her lip. "Well I tried talking to him. He helped me with patrol last night and he just said he's been busy organizing the troops."

"That sounds plausible." Willow seemed confused.

A deep frown made Buffy's lips droop. "Every time I'm near him I just feel wrong... Like I'm not supposed to be near him. It's like these danger bells are ringing in my head and I can't get them out. I think he might be cheating."

Willow nodded, "Maybe. But maybe you might just be a little sensitive about everything because of the lack of powers."

Buffy groaned, "Maybe you're right. But I still get the vibe like he's hiding something."

Willow sighed, "You're being all Transference-y." Insightfully she went on to say, "Have you told Riley about the kiss?"

The Slayer huffed, "What's there to tell? Spike and I kissed once… okay twice. But it's not like we had sex. It's so not a big deal."

Willow chastised, "If Tara kissed another person, I would want to know." Nervously, she looked into her friend's eyes, "Do you have feelings for Spike?"

"What? No! Eww. Spike? Come on! He wears the same thing every day. And, hello, vampire. Did that whole forbidden love thing and it so wasn't worth all the mayhem that followed." Buffy scoffed.

Sagely, Willow nodded her head, "Right. So while you're off swimming in the Nile, I'm off to visit Tara. Are we still on for some Bronzing tonight? It's gonna be a total throw back with just you me and Xander." She asked hopefully.

Buffy blushed, "Well, me and Spike are going to hit some demony hot spots tonight. Then I'm on Dawn duty."

Willow giggled, "I'm going to pretend that little peppy voice thing you did has everything to do with your need to kill things and nothing to do with Spike."

"Of course it does. Because there is nothing going on with Spike." Buffy snorted before Willow vanished with a goodbye on her lips.

Guided by her friend's words, the Slayer followed her feet to Riley's doorstep. Digging through her purse, she pulled out her key to Riley's rented apartment. He had given it to her months ago, but she never felt the need to come over until now. Guilt started to nag at her for the lack of attention to her boyfriend. Plastering a fake smile on the thin curve of her mouth, she strolled through the door.

Amber eyes met green, as creamy legs wrapped around Riley's nude torso. The ragged breaths and smell of sex made Buffy want to heave. She backed out of the apartment into the warm light with a shriek. Riley had turned his head from the voluptuous breast he was teasing with his tongue to shoot a wide eyed stare filled with horror towards his girlfriend. Breathless, he dropped Sasha to the ground, "Buffy!"

Frozen in place, all Buffy could do was watch as Riley pulled up his pants and the other woman retracted her fangs while pulling on a tacky yellow dress that was short enough to be a shirt. Everything was just moving in slow motion. The Slayer barely registered her boyfriend pulling her into the apartment, carefully shutting the door behind her and placing her on the sofa. Frantically, Buffy tried to make sense out of everything but it just tumbled around in her head like a silk shirt in a washing machine. Just like the shirt, her relationship was completely ruined. Her green eyes were fixed on the skanky redhead leaning against the wall. "God, I don't even know where to start." She couldn't hide the cold bite in her tone. Everything just hit her at once, "You're screwing a vampire."

Riley swallowed hard, sitting in front of her on the coffee table. "So are you."

Her mouth dropped, "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Don't insult me. I saw you kiss Spike." Anger colored his words.

A bitter cackle rose from Buffy's throat. "So I kiss Spike once therefore you must find the skankiest vampire around and fuck her? You know how dangerous vampires are. It's a miracle she didn't drain you dry." Her eyes got bigger and soon they were on the vampire fixing her lipstick, completely unconcerned with the humans in the room.

Buffy reached for her stake but Riley stayed her hand. Quietly, he explained, "She's a former lab rat for Walsh. She's completely harmless, Buffy."

Glaring in that slayer way that sent men running for the hills, Buffy hissed, "So that makes it completely okay?"

"No." Riley shot back. "Sasha is different, she makes me feel."

"Makes you feel? So I don't make you feel?" The Slayer shouted defensively.

"You do... You're like nobody else in the world. When I'm with you, it's like - it's like I'm split in two - half of me is just on fire, goin' crazy if I'm not touching you. The other half is so still and peaceful, just perfectly content, knowing that you're the one. But you don't love me. You sure as hell don't need me." Smiling toward Sasha, Riley went on. "She needs me."

Buffy jumped from the sofa and started pacing. "What else do you want from me, Riley? I've given you everything that I have, I've given you my heart, my body and soul!"

Riley shook his head and gave her a sad sort of smile, "You say that, but I don't feel it. I just don't feel it."

Buffy whirled on him, red faced and near tears, she spat, "Well, whose fault is that? Because I'm telling you, this is it. This is me. This is the package. And if it's so deficient that you need to get your kicks elsewhere... then we really have a problem."

Riley shot forward, "I wasn't looking for kicks. I think this just started out as some immature game. Something to even the score between me and you. So I could understand your pull to creatures likes Angel and Spike."

In a flash, Buffy's hand slashed across his face. "How dare you turn this around on me? You were the one fucking that whore! I have been nothing but faithful to you."

Sasha jumped into the conversation with a roar, "Don't touch my mate!"

Buffy turned on him just before the vampire leapt into action. Sasha powered through the pain to pin Buffy to the ground, her fangs out. Buffy head-butted her. Between the blast of the chip and the jerk of Buffy's head into Sasha's face, the vampire lost her grip. The Slayer reached for her stake and plunged it into the heart of her opponent. Sasha dissolved into dust. Not wasting any time, Buffy made a dash for the door.

Once she was far enough from Riley's place, Buffy stopped her running. Her heart was pounding in her head and her breath was ragged. Slowly she walked up the street, noting with sad clarity that Riley was right. _I never loved him._ She seized all movement, dropping lifelessly on a park bench, expecting the burn of tears that never came. She sat there for a while, staring into nothingness.

With a sigh Buffy picked herself up and trudged along the strangely empty streets. Consumed by her own self-loathing, she never noticed a pool of black eyes tracking her. A vicious snarl echoed from an alley across the street from her. The feral noise caught the Slayer's attention a little too late. A giant white dog, the size of a small horse lunged for her.

Narrowly, Buffy dodged the attack with a twist. "Okay, Cujo, I don't want any trouble. Why don't you just scamper off and find a small elephant to eat." Slowly, she backed away from the snarling beast, its dismal, black eyes screaming murder. The dog snapped at her left arm. Its teeth, sharp and menacing, embedded in the silk of her flesh, ripping it apart. An agonized scream tore out of her throat. Buffy's first reaction was to wrench her arm free, but the momentum of the pull, paired with the dog's massive weight, would send her toppling to the concrete asphalt, thereby giving the dog the upper hand.

With an arch of her dainty foot, Buffy kicked the beast in the stomach. The move, however small, forced the massive dog to loosen his grip on her arm. Pressing her advantage with a smack of her fist to the dog's nose had him off her and standing on his hind legs. Unable to keep the position up, he fell forward, choosing to circle her.

Buffy quipped, "You know, normally I'm against animal cruelty, but for you I'm going to make an exception." She pulled out the only weapon she had on hand - a wooden stake. _It might not kill whatever this thing is, but it might disable it long enough for me to run away._ Quickly, Buffy stroke out against the dog as it made a lunge for her legs. She pierced the dogs ribs with her stake, but not before it could pull her down with its vice like jaw around her left leg. The dog made a beeline for her stomach, despite the bleeding in his torso. Panicking, Buffy stabbed the dog again, this time in its throat, as the beast ripped into the taunt muscles of her soft stomach. Blood oozed like a mud slide from both her stomach and the dog's jugular. Lowly, a wheezing sound filled the air from the dog's attempts at breathing. In one final move, it used the last of its strength to go for her throat. Just as bloody teeth grazed the nape of her neck, a whoosh of air, followed by a blur of sandy fur, pushed the dog away. Wide eyed and sicken by the scene, Buffy watched as a mountain lion stood between her and the dog, which was slowly disintegrating. The dog's bones snapped and reformed into something more human, while chunks of meat and muscle fell off the now human skeleton.

Ragged and tired, Buffy clutched her stomach with both hands, scrambling carefully to her feet. The mountain lion turned its head towards the Slayer, showing its unnatural smoky grey eyes to her. "Okay… this is supremely weird and I'm just going to say thanks for taking care of Cujo." Buffy smiled at the creature, backing away slowly. "So this is goodbye then." The mountain lion nodded its head in reply before starting to eat the bloody remains of the dead beast. Using the last of her energy, Buffy carried herself to the closest ally in the area.

Spike was lounging in his beat up recliner, watching Passions when his iron door clattered open, letting in the noon sun. Buffy slammed the door shut as Spike hopped from his spot. "Please tell me you have a first aid kit around here somewhere?" Buffy grimaced, slouching against the door.

Spike rushed to her aid, choking on the gushing blood perfuming his crypt since the Slayer's arrival. His demon was screaming as him to vamp out and devour her. _God, Slayer's blood, so warm... so good... just right here, wrapped in a pretty blonde package._ Pushing down his demon, Spike tried to make his voice light to belie his hunger, "You know, there are these funny places called hospitals nowadays that actually take care of major injuries like this. You might want to think about going to one." Spike drawled before picking her up and laying her on a stone slab.

Buffy tried her best to glare but it came out wispy and pouty. "What can I say, your place was closer." Buffy whined to the back of his head as he fetched a little white box from the lower level of his crypt.

The ratta tap, tap of her heartbeat sounded strange in Spike's ears. It was struggling beneath her breast, forcing him to move faster in his ministrations. He caressed her face tenderly; the need to see her well was greater than his hunger, allowing him to nurse her wounds without the fear of killing her. _She's still warm… a little too much, but not feverish yet. That's good I think. Damn humans, never know what's going to kill them. It was so much easier when they were just dinner._ Teasingly, Spike tried to keep his actions normal by mocking her, "Couldn't you refrain from getting into trouble while the sun's out. It would make watchin your back infinitely easier for me." He pulled off Buffy's ruined shirt, using it to mop up the last of the blood. There was no time to ogle the soft curve of her breast in the baby blue bra or to run his fingers along her silky bronze skin. He had to focus on the pool of blood that made his demon howl with the need to fight, feed and fuck.

A soft smile pulled at her pastel lips. She too was trying to be blasé about the situation. However, talking was becoming increasingly hard to do and the swooshing in her head made her want to fall apart. Following the typical lines of banter between them, Buffy rolled her eyes, "Yeah, tell that to Cujo."

 _The blood is coagulating, that's good._ With a better look at the teeth marks, Spike bit back a gasp. _Bloody hell, it's deep._ Carefully, he ran his fingers over the jagged edges of the wounds that seemed much too large and sharp for a dog bite. Spike questioned with an air of disbelieve, "Cujo?"

Buffy grumbled with the memory of the giant beast and the strange mountain lion that came to her rescue. Black spots invaded her vision and she whimpered with the last of her strength "Long story. Let's just say dogs and Buffy are not so mixy now."

"Right," He grabbed her hand, putting it on the shirt over her wounded stomach. "Hold it just like that, okay? I'm going to get something to sterilize it before I wrap it." He wandered over to his armchair, grabbing a bottle of Jack Danielles. "Lucky for you, you don't need stitches." Swaggering back over to the sarcophagus, Spike removed her hand before he poured whisky over the wound. He started to wrap the wound with gauze. Narrowing his eyes, Spike asked, "Mind tellin me a little more about how Cujo managed to get a nibble?" When no answer came, he lifted his head to her face and saw that she had passed out while he was cleaning her wound. "Right then, s'pose being turned into a human chew toy would take it out of a gal." He said to the sleeping slayer, "No worries, luv. Rest up here. I'm going to do a bit of leg work on our mutt." He picked her up from the bloody slab and placed her on his bed before leaving through the sewers.


	12. The Recipe for Getting Rid of a Bad Day

Author's Notes:

WARNING: This chapter mentions/describes violence, torture, and non-consensual acts of a sexual nature (rape). Please read with caution, or skip reading this chapter, if these bother you in any way. You've been warned.

The Recipe for Getting Rid of a Bad Day

Chapter Twelve

A sharp and jagged ache radiated through her entire body, settling in her upper abdomen. The Slayer's hand shot to the well bandaged wound as she slowly got up from the plush bed. _God I miss Slayer healing._ Finding herself alone, she fumbled around in search for some type of light. Every wrong shift of her torso was like being needled all over by hot pinchers, turning every step into an enormous effort on her part. _Stupid dog. So glad that mountain lion thing ate you. Now I need a non-bloody shirt so I can get out of here._ Buffy grasped the slick cavern walls to both navigate the dark and to keep herself upright.

A chuckle danced in the darkness, making the Slayer jump nearly out of her skin. She spun toward the noise, ready for battle, but all she found was a Spike-shaped silhouette a few feet away from where she stood and the glowing red dot of a cigarette.

"If you're trying to get away, that direction will take you to the sewers. Not a smart move for a tasty treat like yourself to be wandering about down there."

The baritone voice put Buffy at ease. She slumped against the slimy wall before she teased Spike, "What is with you vampires and doing the whole lurking in the shadows thing? It's kinda bordering on the Boulevard of totally cliché."

"Wasn't lurkin. I was standin about. Huge difference there, pet." He smirked back as he flickered around the lower cavern of his home, lighting a few electric lanterns that cast an eerie glow over the makeshift room. If there had been proper light in the lower level, the setup would be considered completely ordinary for an underground bedroom. However, the shadows that skulked on the edges of the low illumination, bathed every dumpster rescued pieces of furniture in an air of resplendence that the room did not possess.

No longer hidden by the dark, her state of undress became more noticeable. Embarrassment crept up her cheeks as Buffy shifted uncomfortably on her feet. In an attempt to lessen her awkwardness she folded her arms over her chest before replying, "Same dif. Now I need a shirt. Preferably one without blood on it."

Spike's lips pressed into a leer. Now that Buffy was up and about, he let himself ogle the delicate sway of her hips and the small hills of her breasts. Crudely, he joked, "Really now. I think you look quite fetching without it. If you're up for it, I could give you a hand gettin out of the rest of those cumbersome clothes."

Buffy rolled her eyes, "Not going to happen, Spike."

"Oh come on, Slayer, I bet if you give me half a chance, I'll make your toes curl more than Captain Cardboard or the great poof ever did." Spike teased before taking pity on the girl and going to search for a spare shirt.

She couldn't help the frown that dampened her lips at the mention of the soldier's name. The image of the female vampire wrapped around Riley was seared into her mind and it hurt more than any helldog's bite. Bitterly, she shot back, "You're a pig, Spike."

Her words were deprived of their usual venom and it made Spike drop the act. His blue eyes softened and they met her green ones, only to find them frosted with tears. He gave her one of his black t-shirts and tenderly asked, "You okay, luv?"

Buffy bit her lower lip, not sure how to answer, so she pulled on the shirt that still had the faint smell of tobacco and leather on it. She could feel Spike's eyes on her, gently demanding answers about her change in mood. The need to tell someone bubbled on her lips, but uncertainty stilled her tongue. The Spike she knew from the past would simply mock her inability to keep a man, but now, with his declaration of love hanging in the air, she wasn't so sure. Buffy sulked, "What can I say, it was already a very bad day before my surprise rendezvous with Cujo. Which, okay, I have to say, seeing Cujo's crumbling corpse turn into a human skeleton was the wiggiest death sequence I have ever seen. And as a Slayer I've seen some revolting deaths in my time."

Spike nodded, "Huh, that's weird. You killed Cujo and boom he turned human on you?"

Buffy folded her arms, "I didn't deal the death blow. I just stuck a stake in his throat. A mountain lion did the rest for me." She considered her words for a moment. "And Cujo didn't turn human. It was like all the meat and hair and stuff around his bones just fell off and then his skeleton reformed into human bones."

Shrugging, he offered, "Sounds like a bit of magic I reckon. Might want to get Glinda and Red to look over the remains."

Buffy nodded her agreement, "Right. I'll call them when I get home."

Curiosity got the better of Spike, "So what had your knickers in a twist before Cujo got the better of you?"

A pout formed on her lips. She ignored the question in favor of retreating, "I should go." She mumbled as she staggered over to the iron ladder. "Thanks for your help." She added as an afterthought.

The Slayer clutched the bandaged area of her body as a failed attempt to climb up the rings jostled her wound. Spike closed the distance between them immediately. "Come on, Slayer, let me help you up. Before you start bleeding again."

Gracefully, he swooped her up like one of those heroes in romance novels. Only, Buffy hated those guys on principle, and she found her hands curled into fists, pounding Spike's chest, even though she was unable to stop the fluttering in her heart that had started at his touch. Annoyed at the entire situation, Buffy pouted. _Come on, slayers don't get carried around like some B-rated damsels in distress._ Her voice in a full whine, Buffy demanded, "Spike, put me down now!"

Once at the top level, Spike did as directed and dropped her down unceremoniously, "Alright. Be that way."

She managed to land inelegantly on her feet, "Could you be more of an ass?"

"Sorry. God forbid someone helps you," Spike scoffed in mock apology.

Frustration from the past three weeks took the better of her and Buffy snarled, "I don't need your help. I'm not some damn damsel in distress who needs you to swoop in and save me."

She leveled Spike with a disappointed look on her face, "I thought you understood that."

"You didn't seem to mind the swooping in and saving bit when you stumbled in here like a glorified chew toy." Defensibly he spat.

Buffy shook her head before an explanation crossed her lips "That was different. I actually needed the help then. But I could have gotten up the ladder without you."

Spike scoffed, "Yeah, and split your stomach open trying." Sarcasm dripped in the air from his tongue, "Forgive me for not wanting you bleeding all over my sodding crypt again. It's already hard enough to control the ol' blood lust, without Slayer blood perfuming the deck."

She couldn't help but soften at his outburst. "I forgot about that… I didn't think things through."

Coolly, Spike replied, "Clearly."

She swallowed hard, preparing herself for her next words, "I trust you, you know." She needed to say it. Give him something for all the things he'd done for her lately.

His mouth dropped, unable to form logical sentences, before guilt nagged at him to tell her about Hank. Yet the words wouldn't come, he had to keep listening to the Slayer's declaration, "That's why I came here. I knew if… if I got here…. I would be safe… I didn't think about you draining me. Which, okay, not my brightest move. I mean, hello, vampire. There's nothing-"

He had to cut her off somehow. If she went on, he would be undone. His mouth would be running away with confessions that would stomp whatever warm fuzzies were developing between them. Risking a broken nose, he silenced her with a kiss. Their tongues battled for dominance. They drank each other, their bodies saying everything they couldn't. Spike's hand managed to unhook the baby blue bra under the borrowed shirt, before he felt the touch of gauze as he explored the slayer's body.

He reluctantly pulled away, noting the slight grimace on her face. "You're hurt."

Buffy rolled her eyes, "Yeah, kinda why I'm here in the first place." Slowly, the lust cleared from her mind and she could feel again the small stabs of pain which turned out to be a real mood killer, "Guess we should hold off on that until later anyway."

Spike's eyes widened, " I'm going to need a little clarification here. Cause if this is going where I think it is, there's no going back for me. And I am not going to play second fiddle to Finn."

Her body melted at the sound of his lust-filled, husky voice. "Good thing I broke up with Riley today then." She pulled him down for another long kiss. "I want you... and I trust you."

 _Oh bollocks! There's that sodding word again._ Guilt nagged at him to tell the truth. He could feel the remains of William fighting with his demon and coming out on top. _You got to tell her. If you love her, you're gonna tell her right now._ That one point forced him to come clean, "Buffy, luv… I got to say this." He looked nervous, like any second he would be rendered into dust.

Her eyes hardened, "What's the sitch Spike?"

Slowly, he started, "I love you. I just want you to keep that in mind when I tell you everything."

Suddenly feeling very uncomfortable, Buffy folded her arms. "Spike, just spit it out."

"Okay… Remember that bloke that took my chip out?" He started to pace around like a caged panther. The Slayer nodded, signaling him to go on. "You see… I didn't tell you the whole truth. I've been working with the bloke the whole time. He showed me where second string's body was so I could get in good graces with your team." Dumbstruck, her mouth fell open. Spike kept rambling. "But I'm not working with that git anymore. I love you. And I don't want to you hurt. I thought, because he was your da' it was okay. Parents protect their kids and all that rot. Only, now I'm not so sure whether I want to be a part of whatever plans he might have."

It all hit her at once. _Spike lied. Of course Spiked lied. Why wouldn't he lie?!_ She could hear Xander's voice now, 'Once an evil blood sucking fiend, always an evil blood sucking fiend. Just look at Angelus _.'_ A quick sting of a slap ricocheted off Spike's face. Furious with herself, Buffy spat, "You lied to me."

Backpedaling, Spike answered, "No, no, Buffy luv. I didn't lie. I just—"

"Then what do you call saying one thing to cover up something else?" Buffy's hands were on her hips and she scowled. Then her eyes widened and her mouth went dry. Faith's cold, dead eyes stared at her from the jaws of the lion. Coldly, she hissed, "You killed Faith, didn't you?"

He swallowed hard, "Please, I didn't, I swear. I told you I haven't killed anyone and that includes second string."

Buffy huffed, "You also said you killed the demon who took your chip out. But now you're saying you didn't kill him and this demon is really my father. Why should I even believe you? No, don't answer that because I can't… I just can't."

She made to storm away but Spike stopped her, putting his hands on her shoulders, "Look, you don't have to believe me about anything else I've said, but you have to believe me about this - Hank isn't what you think he is. Just think about it, he shows up when all this starts? Come on, Buffy, there's no such thing as coincidences for people like us. He's involved somehow. Please, luv, don't say anythin to him until I sort everything out."

A strike to the nose broke Spike's grip on her. He wiped the streaming blood away with a hand as he watched her run away from him. Into the daylight.

The sun slowly sunk below the horizon, staining the sky in a rich shades of red, that were as bloody as her thoughts by the time she got home. Buffy knew without a doubt she should call Willow to do a disinvite spell, but that involved acknowledging Spike was a threat again. Something she couldn't bring herself to do at that moment. The phone rang in the kitchen and Buffy scrambled to pick it up with a forlorn 'hello'. Hannah was on the other side of the line, "Hey, Buffy... I was just calling to let you know Dawn won't be by tonight. She's doing a sleep over with that Janna girl while Hanky and I are in L.A for the weekend."

Annoyed, Buffy barked into the phone, "Right, okay. Thanks for telling me." She hung up, Spike's warning in mind. Worried for her little sister, Buffy called Janice's house. Three rings and the girl's mom picked up, "Hello?"

Buffy smiled, "Hey, Mrs. Penshaw, this is Buffy. Is Dawn there? I need to talk to her."

Mrs. Penshaw replied all too cheerfully, "Yes, let me get her."

In the background Buffy heard the woman call to Dawn and in a snap the youngest Summers was on the phone. "What?"

Buffy rolled her eyes at her sister response, "Hey, Dawny. I'm just checking on you."

Dawn sighed in the dramatic teen way she always did when she was annoyed, "I'm fine. I already cleared the sleep over with dad."

Buffy frowned again, "Okay... great. I just wanted to make sure you were there. Sunnydale has been crazy lately."

The younger girl softened her tone, "Yeah, I know. Look, Jan and I won't go out tonight, okay? We're just doing nails and movies. Alright?"

The Slayer smiled into the receiver, " Fine. Have fun. Maybe tomorrow we can do some sisterly bonding. Okay?"

Buffy could feel her sister narrowing her eyes into the phone with that suspicious look in her baby blues, "Alright, tomorrow... Buffy? Love you."

With a quick goodbye the Slayer hung up the phone.

 _The recipe for getting rid of a bad day is simple: Start with a nice, cold bottle of vodka. If vodka is not available, go for the Sauvignon Blanc your mom keeps in the liquor cabinet for guests. Remember to replace the bottle before your mom gets back home in three weeks._

Buffy hunted down a cork screw, popping the bottle open swiftly, before marching up the stairs to the bathroom.

 _Then you must drink directly from the bottle while filling the bathtub. Add some bubbles and light some candles for better effect. Yes, some might argue, and with merit, that it is trashy to drink wine directly from the bottle, while wearing a ratty old bathrobe. Personally, I just like to see it as a return to my roots as a potential lush. Anyway, if the recipe is going well no one should be there to judge, because... you know, fuck people... Especially bleach blond menaces, cheating ex-boyfriends and possibly demon dads._

The steaming water from the large tub seemed to promise Buffy a way to wash off the ick from the day. Once the tub was filled, she quickly turned off the faucet. Removing the grey rag of a robe that clung to the subtle curves of Buffy's perky breasts and lean hips, she dipped herself in the hot water.

For a second, all was right with the world. The water embraced Buffy like a mother's hug, while the wine made her feel light and airy for the first time since she lost her spark. She'd been soaking for a good ten minutes when she heard footsteps coming up the stairs. Buffy got out of the tub and fished her robe from the floor. "This better be important." She barely had enough time to cover herself when the bathroom door swung open to reveal Riley. _I could have sworn he agreed to leave me alone_.

Buffy closed her robe tightly, "Riley, what are you doing here?"

He puffed himself up, "After what happened today, I couldn't let it go. You killed her."

Anger flashed in her eyes, "Yeah, your whore attacked me and I killed her. Now leave."

Riley refused to back down, "It's more than that though. You have been pulling away ever since you lost your slayer powers. We need to talk about this."

This was all too much for the Slayer. Coldly, she looked into his eyes, "Riley, there's nothing to discuss. You were right, I never loved you. Please go away."

Riley's voice dropped lower, "Fine, after you answer one thing for me. Is there nothing we need to discuss because you're in love with Spike or is there nothing to discuss because you're just a deceitful cunt?"

She could see he was uncharacteristically angry; his voice had dropped to a menacing growl. "Riley, just go home," She begged and stormed out of the bathroom, giving up on her plan of relaxing and walked into her bedroom, trying to avoid confrontation.

Riley followed, refusing to take that for an answer, "No, not until I hear you say it. You're fuckin him." His eyes were demanding an answer, a real answer.

Buffy glared at him, "If that will get you to leave, fine. I'm having sex with Spike. Is that what you wanted to hear?" Her tone was firm, and, as defeated as she may have felt, she didn't let it show.

The more he stood in Buffy's presence, the angrier he got. He grabbed her arm and pulled her close, "That is bullshit."

Buffy could feel his grip tighten, threatening to break her arm. "You're right. It is. Because I am not the cheater here." She didn't want to fight him, not while she was still under par. She tried to twist away, "Let me go. Now, Riley! I am not in the mood for this."

Riley seemed to squeeze harder every time Buffy pulled away. Everything escalated quickly, changing from a simple argument to frantic kicking and punching. Buffy was sloppy due to her earlier injuries and it was slowing her down, giving Riley an unneeded edge. Soon, he managed to rip the sash of her robe off, revealing her naked form, and use it to tie her hands with it. "I saw you with Spike... You kissed him." Heartbreak stained Riley's voice. "I love you so much. You never wanted me." He pinned Buffy down, using his whole muscular body to restrict her movements.

Riley was ogling her, greedily kissing one of her small breasts. She kneed him in the groin. He groaned in pain but didn't let go. Instead, he slapped her across the face with his free hand. Buffy begged as she saw that Riley's eyes were more black than brown, his pupils blown. _Crap, this has all the signs of some soldier super drug wackiness._ "Riley, look at what you're doing. You're not that guy…just... let me go." She pleaded.

Riley plunged his shaft inside Buffy, relishing how she felt around him, before he whined. "I love you. Why don't you love me?" He pulled Buffy closer, ignoring her pained screams, and kissed her neck, feeling an almost manic need to fill her up with his cock.

Buffy started to cry, "Don't do this, please." She squirmed underneath him, finally getting one hand free. Buffy reached for a knife on the nightstand but he grabbed her arm. Allowing himself to pull out of her for a second, Riley stared down at her with disgust; shaking his head he whispered "You never loved me." He slapped her as hard as he could and blood filled her mouth. In an act of wordless defiance, Buffy spat it into his face. Enraged, Riley slammed her to the floor, kicking her in the stomach.

Before Buffy could stagger to her feet, Riley had her pinned down again, thrusting his cock inside her, desperately trying to reach his orgasm. Seconds before he found his bliss, however, a cold dead hand locked around his throat.

Chapter End Notes:

Okay, hope you guys enjoy this chapter. I know Buffy out of Character in this chapter but I felt like it worked within the story.

Another big thanks to Whisperrr for editing this


	13. No More Hospitals

Author's Notes:

Warning Quote from show

Wedden, Joss. "Out of My Mind (." _IMDb_. , 12 Apr. 2000. Web. 14 Apr. 2015. title/tt0533468/quotes.

No More Hospitals

Chapter Thirteen

The heavy iron door banged open, the resounding boom travelling though the silent crypt. Finally, the time had come for Spike to be handled. There was no more room to put it off. Riley was dead and it was Spike's doing. It was simple really, Spike was a killer; what he did was only expected. The shocking thing was that he hadn't done it sooner.A shutter screamed through her body at the horrifying scene of Riley on the floor, blood seeping into her carpet, before Spike vanished off with him. The Slayer could still feel the belt around her wrists, digging into her skin and the terrifying sensation of being violated. Inhaling a breath, she could smell the cheap whisky that soaked the air on top of the perfume of nicotine as she jumped to the lower level of the crypt.

Spike was sprawled out on the king sized bed, sleeping soundly. It wouldn't be long before he registered Buffy's jack-rabbit heartbeat and the smell of her fear. But that fear was not from the master vampire in front of her; no, it was from her own inaction to stop him last night. One word could have prevented Riley's death, instead she had gladly watched Spike beat the boy bloody.

Now Buffy loomed over Spike, stake poised to attack.

Feigning sleep, Spike rolled to his side to face her, letting the thin white sheet covering his smooth skin fall off of him. He had woken the second she entered his home. One blue eye cracked open to check Buffy's injuries. She was still painted in black and blue, a last gift from Riley but behind all that damage there were flames licking in the green depths of her eyes. Spike took it as a sign that she was better. Deciding to give up the antics he stretched, pretending to wake up. He propped his head on one bent arm and asked quietly. "So this is how I am repaid for doing a favor for the Slayer?"

Buffy's voice came out as little more than a squeak, "Where is he?" She needed to perform her duty, for her friends. _'He's a killer,'_ Mrs. Calendar's voice bounced in her head as one big reminder of what happens when you trust a killer. _'He's a killer who kills for you, B.'_ Faith's voice added _._ Buffy scoffed to herself. _Keeping Spike around is like keeping a wild tiger chained up in the backyard It's not a question of if he is going to murder someone else; it's a question of when._

He got off the bed wearing nothing but his trademark smirk. With mock innocence Spike asked, "Where's who?"

Buffy let steel creep into her throat, hardening her words into dagger points, "You killed him."

The vampire closed the gap between them and she tightened her grip on the stake. He brushed a stubborn lock of hair that had fallen loose from her ponytail and pinned it behind her ear. Relishing her warmth and the memory of his human kill, he smirked, "Now why do you think I killed the bloke?"

She poised the stake at his heart, "Because you did!"

Spike inhaled the sweet scent of her strawberry shampoo, "Maybe I did. Or maybe he choked on his own stupidity." He spoke softly, but Buffy wouldn't stand it; if she could stop him from killing more people, she would.

"I should stake you!" She snarled.

Spike shook his head sadly. He grabbed the hand holding the stake, shifting her aim just an inch higher. "Do it then! End my torment. Seeing you, every day, everywhere I go, every time I turn around. Take me out of a world that has you in it. Kill me!"

She dropped the stake, devouring his mouth in a kiss to end all kisses. Clothes were flying, mouths were moving. Every touch obliterated Riley's, making her want Spike all the more. She was on top of him, bucking her hips up and down, feeling full and complete for the first time ever. He was murmuring sweet nothings into her ear as she rode him into oblivion. The smell of fresh blood started to fill the crypt and Buffy clasped her hands over her stomach. "Will this ever stop?"

Spike pulled her close and kissed her, trying to make everything go away. "Don't think of him anymore. I'm here."

His blue eyes were hauntingly sincere. Her blood covered them both but all she could focus on was his touch and the breathlessness in her chest. A realization hit her at once and she could not control the tumble of words leaving her mouth, "I love you. God, I love you so much."

Her eyes shot open and she found herself in the hospital, doctors staring down at her. "You're awake," an intern with muddy brown eyes and a dashing smile noted, "I'm Ben Wilkinson and that is Dr. Galvin."

Dr. Galvin was a plump, forty something year old, with no hair and obviously lacking any people skills as he dove into the conversation with the grace of a walrus, "Well missy, I would say you're lucky to be alive but two major hospital visits in two months has me a little concerned. Would you like to tell us what has brought you here this time before we let your friends in?"

Confused, Buffy wrinkled her nose, uncertain what to say. "I don't know, how did I get here?"

The doctor gave her a strange look, "A rather nefarious sort of young man brought you in." Sympathetically, he added, "Are you in trouble, sweetheart? We can call the authorities if you need help."

Buffy frowned, "No... I'm fine."

Ben jumped into the conversation before Dr. Galvin could probe any farther, "Why don't you get Miss Summers' friends while I finish going over everything with her?"

Dr. Galvin nodded, "Alright. Good evening, miss Summers. If you have questions don't hesitate to ask."

He vanished down to the waiting room, which was on edge. Spike was constantly pestering nurses while Xander paced the length of the waiting area. Willow was busying herself with making phone calls to Giles, Joyce, and Hank to update them on Buffy's progress. In contrast, Anya was angrily leafing through a magazine and Tara was watching everything unfold. Willow finally took a seat next to her girlfriend and started nervously tapping her fingers against the armrest right as Spike stormed out of the waiting area.

"That's odd." Tara said quietly, as if to herself.

The redhead turned in her seat to face her. "What's odd, baby?" She asked, concern lacing her voice.

"Spike. He just left."

Willow thought that the other witch looked worried, which struck her as strange. No one was ever concerned for Spike. She looked toward the exit, "Oh... I didn't even realize he was still here. He does seem grouchier than normal."

Xander started to ramble, "Does it really matter." He stopped his wild pacing. "There are bigger things going on right now! And sometimes you just have to man up to things like this... Because life happens, there are risks to being in a relationship. And- and it's going to be okay." He was clearly panicked and Willow was starting to freak.

She stared at Xander, confused, "What are you talking about? Buffy got attacked by some demon and you're rambling about relationships? God knows where Giles and Riley are right now and Spike is being weirdly helpful so I insist to know what is going on right now, people!" Willow had that scary look in her eye, demanding answers.

Obviously Anya didn't get the message, "Oh don't mind Xander, he's just a little freaked out about possibly becoming a father." She stated bluntly.

"Anya! I thought we agreed not to tell anyone until we're sure." Xander cried, mortified.

"No, Xander, I am sure. You are the only one who is not sure." Anya fumed. "I can't believe you're going to let our child be a bastard."

Awkwardness crept into the waiting room as the couple started to argue.

Dr. Galvin strolled over to the group of young people. "Excuse me. Are you all friends of Miss Summers?"

Willow leapt from her seat, "Yes, we are. Is she okay?"

The doctor answered briskly, "Yes, She's fine. If you would like, you could go see her."

Their feet carried the group past a number of rooms until they got to the end of the hall. The doctor opened the door with a few unremarkable parting words.

The scene that greeted them upon entering the room made the Scoobies gasp in shock. Spike had gotten into Buffy's room first and now they were having a silent battle of wills. Unaware of the presence of her friends in there, she hissed. "You will leave my town tonight, Spike, and you will leave it without any bloodshed. Are we clear?"

Spike grumbled, "Oh don't worry about bloodshed, Slayer, I'm perfectly capable of finding numerous ways to kill that wanker without dropping a lick of blood."

Willow was certain Spike was about to shift into game face and give a demonstration on the nearest warm body. She pulled her girlfriend closer while Xander stood between Anya and the possible danger. Much to everyone's relief, Spike started to storm out. Buffy looked sadly after his retreating form and called after him, "Please."

For a second he paused and made to go back, ready to give into whatever request she might have, but couldn't bring himself to do it. He disappeared down the halls.

Anya broke the tension, "That was increasingly uncomfortable. I'm pretty sure I've hung out in less stressful war zones."

Willow fired a question, "What in the hell is going on? First Angel comes to my apartment, all cryptic guy with a message about you being here and now Spike is all grr again? Someone please spill already."

Buffy sighed, "I can't help you on the Angel front. I didn't even know he was involved until like five minutes ago." Sheepishly, she went on. "Wills, you're going to need to do a disinvite to every house Spike's been to. He doesn't have the chip anymore which makes him a threat again."

Xander probed, "Is that how you ended up here?"

Buffy smiled bitterly, "Trust me, Xan, he's not to blame for this. In fact I wouldn't be alive if not for him. Hence the free pass to get out of my town. No one goes after him, understood?"

Xander sputtered, "But Spike is a dangerous killer. If we let him walk away, it's gonna turn into another Angelus situation. "

 _Xan, if only you knew how right you are._ Buffy closed her eyes trying to block out the look of longing hidden behind Spike's temper after she threw him out of her room. "Listen to me, Spike is off limits until sunrise. If he's not gone by then. I'll handle him." Tears threatened to run down her face. All of it was hitting her at once. Riley's betrayal, her love for Spike, all felt like one cruel joke by the Powers That Be. _Once again a man I trusted turned out to be a monster._

Willow cut in, "Xander's right. I mean what if Spike doesn't leave town. And… and comes after us… or you. You're the last link to the Slayer line. We can't just risk it, Buffy."

Xander added, "We have to fan out and find him. We need to take him out before he comes after us."

Anya glowered at her boyfriend, "That's stupid. If he wanted us dead we would know it already. It's not like he's one for patience."

Flustered now, the boy rambled , "Spike is evil! We can't let soulless killers run around all Willy-Nilly."

A brooding shadow formed in the doorway leaning against the frame. Clearing his throat, the newcomer jumped into the conversation. "Xander's right. Spike is dangerous."

The Scoobies jerked their heads around to meet Angel.

Buffy glared after the group, "Look, no one touches Spike but me, got it? Willow, just do the disinvites. Xander, don't do anything rash." Her green eyes narrowed at her ex. "Angel, that goes double for you. No killing Spike."

The vampire frowned, "Can we talk alone?"

The Scoobies looked around at each other before looking toward Buffy. She gave them a nod telling them to leave. Willow took charge. "Right we'll go… call Giles."

Once the room was clear, Angel roamed deeper into it. "I'm sorry that I haven't been here. I was working a case out of town for a while. My team and I just got back."

A sad smile stretched on Buffy's face, "It's alright. The gang and I have it covered."

He sat on the foot of the bed, "Yeah, looks like it."

Tired from blood lost, Buffy groaned, "Why are you here, Angel?"

His face was completely neutral. _It's funny how a year ago I would have found that mysterious and sexy but now it's just annoying._ His voice was equally as neutral, betraying nothing about the way he felt. "I am here because I care. Cordy had a vision about the Riley and Spike situation."

"Sh-she saw. All of it?" her voice cracked and threaten to break.

Angel attempted to reassure her, unable to figure out what to say, "If she did, she forgot to mention it. The only thing she told me and Wes was that Spike was off his leash and trying to kill Riley while you were bleeding to death on your floor. Trust me, if I had known more I might have let Spike have his way."

She took in a deep breath to collect herself. Certain she could talk without breaking down, Buffy asked, "So you just came charging to the rescue?"

A thin line formed on his lips, "It's kinda my gig." Carefully he grabbed her hand, "What do you want me to do about Riley? I can't protect him from Spike forever." He studied the purple bruises around her throat trailing down to her breast. Unwittingly, a growl vibrated from his chest before he added, "More importantly, I don't want to. It's all I can do not to harm him myself."

Buffy stiffened at the name and jerked his hand away. She could still feel Riley on her and it made her shiver. A part of her wanted Spike or Angel to finish the ex-soldier off but it was reigned in by the inner Slayer voice that screamed that Riley was her kill. Only, Buffy didn't kill. _Riley was human and under human laws rapist don't get the death penalty._ Bravely she demanded, "Where is he?"

Angel pulled away a little, "Cordy and Wes are standing guard over him in the mansion."

She swallowed hard, "Angel, Riley's mine to take care of. Got it? Until I can... just get him out of town. Please."

He sighed, "Fine. For you I'll advise him to leave Sunnydale tomorrow morning. But if he comes near you again I'm going to finish what Spike started."

Her frown deepened, "Thank you."

Angel had never seen her look so lost before. Her eyes, always so full of fire, were now turned into ash. Even when he was Angelus she still quipped and fought with the best of them. "Buffy, I might have a way for you to restore the Slayer line. And maybe get your powers back in the process."

Buffy perked, "Really? How?"

Angel replied, "It's not really a way. It's more like a way to find a way. A friend of mine sees people's fates if you sing for him. He's in L.A. He might be able to help. It's a long shot. "

Buffy nodded, "I don't care. I am tired of being helpless."

Chapter End Notes:

Big thanks to Whisperrr wouldn't have been able to do without her


	14. Freud and Fortune Tellers

Freud and Fortune tellers

Chapter Fourteen

Out of all the demon bars and strange places Buffy found herself in Caritas which, oddly enough, was both the weirdest and the safest. The club goers, though not all human, seemed to be at ease with each other. Even species that were normally at each other's throats seemed to mingle peacefully with one another over the sound of garbled singing. _Okay, we got to get this sanctuary spell thing at the Bronze or something._ Buffy gracefully sat at the bar while her ever present shadows pushed past the demon clientele with ease. _They're just trying to be helpful. They don't mean to be suffocating and controlling. Expecting any of them, save from Anya and Tara, to give me any form of space is simply naïve._ With a sigh she waved over a bartender with scales the most delightful shade of blue and eyes that you could sunbathe in. The bartender for his part gave a flirty smile with his porcelain fangs. _He's cute if not for the fangs that could rip through you like some easily ripable thing. Fangs aren't so bad but these are the wrong kind of fangs, too demony and the eyes are just too yellow. Nope, he just doesn't have those too human blue eyes and stupid bleached hair. Crap, the one time he listens to me is the one time I really wish he didn't! I should've just let him kill Riley. I mean, really, what harm could it have done? It's not like he didn't deserve it._ Her brows scrunched together and her lips pursed at her sour thoughts. _Wait, no, Buffy, bad train of thought! You've been hanging out with Anya too much._

The bartender snapped Buffy from her internal rant, "Man, I really don't get humans sometimes. A beautiful thing like you should not be sitting here alone." He tried to give a come hither leer but his long curved fangs made the expression too predatory.

Quickly she looked around for her friends only to find Anya and Xander singing off key to some bubblegum pop song from way back while Tara and Willow looked through a book of songs. _Is Xander singing 'I got you babe'?_ Unbidden, a smile formed on her lips as the boy tried to hit a high note.

'I got you to hold my hand

I got you to understand

I got you to walk with me

I got you to talk with me

I got you to kiss goodnight

I got you to hold me tight

I got you, I won't let go

I got you to love me so'

With another attempt at a charming smile the bartender asked, "So what can I get you?"

She shrugged, "Got anything fruity with lots of vodka in it?"

He pondered for a minute before he said, "How do you feel about Cosmopolitans?"

"Pretty good." She finally smiled back at him as he poured the drink and placed it in front of her.

"My name is Sam by the way. And this is on the house." His yellow eyes beamed warmly at her.

"Thanks, Sam. I'm Buffy." she took a sip of the drink. "And this is wonderful."

The exchange pulled the attention of the Host from the young couple on stage. His scarlet eyes glanced over the Slayer, instantly recognizing her as both Angel's ex-flame and the girl from a bleach blonde's future. Drink in hand, the Host sauntered over as the couple finished up their song.

I got you babe

I got you babe

I got you babe

I got you babe

The green demon with red horns smiled at the Slayer , "Sammykins dear, why don't you go take care of those lovely girls over there? This one is taken in a big way." He gestured to a sea of California blondes whispering to each other about the strange patrons.

Sam looked to Buffy pleadingly to deny his boss's claim but she merely thanked him.

The demon smiled at her, "He's a flirt but it's hard to find a good bartender that can make a Sea Breeze. And I would hate to lose him after one of your vampires got the wrong idea about Sammy." He sighed dramatically, "Jealousy such an ugly thing." He extended a hand, "I'm the Host by the way. But you can call me Lorne."

Buffy took it with a gentle smile. "I'm Buffy." The introduction was an unneeded nicety that was done more for the sake of politeness than actual identification. "But Angel probably already told you that," she reminded. Buffy was here for a reason and it wasn't to listen to Tara and Willow sing 'Leather and Lace'. Internally, the Slayer cringed at Willow's selection as the chime of the instrumental accompaniment played from the loud speakers followed by the two wicca's shaky voices.

Is love so fragile

And the heart so hollow

Shatter with words

Impossible to follow

You're saying I'm fragile

I try not to be

I search only

For something

I can't see

Half focused on the gentle lovers, Lorne studied with a quiet appreciation the petite girl that somehow had managed to wrap two master vampires around her finger. "Yeah, tall and broody did. He's quite the melodramatic one but you already know that." He downed the remains of his Sea Breeze.

Buffy laughed, "Don't forget cryptic."

Gently, he pushed, "So unlike your latest vampire flame."

Buffy jerked toward him, nearly spilling her drink in the process. "What are you talking about?"

"Never mind, some 80s reject got my wires crossed, sweetcakes." He quickly backtracked in a clumsy attempt to smooth the waters while collecting as much information as possible.

Wearily, she picked at a cherry stem while Tara and Willow gave each other sickeningly sweet glances on stage.

I have my own life

And I am stronger

Than you know

But I carry this feeling

When you walked into my house

That you won't be walking out the door

Still I carry this feeling

When you walked into my house

That you won't be walking out the door

There was no way for her to deny it, Buffy missed Spike. She looked for him on every patrol only to find him missing an action. It had been three days since she kicked him out of town and now she regretted it. _Spike's a killer who wanted to sell you out. Remember the whole spying on you for your father thing?_ She frowned before narrowing her eyes at Lorne, "Angel said you can see people's fates. Can you help me or not?" Conflict stormed in her eyes, freezing her heart.

Carefully, he stepped over the demand, "I might be able to, but it might not be to the problem you're thinking of."

She sipped more of her drink, "Right now I only have one problem that I need fixed, the rest can wait."

He couldn't help the knowing dip of his head as he nodded. "Right. Just pick a song and I'll do my best to help, sweetcakes."

Buffy downed the last of her Cosmo, the liquor seeping into her brain, "Okay."

The Host looked at the line-up. Tara and Willow were. "How do you feel about going on after Strawberry Shortcake and Stevie Nicks?"

Lovers forever

Face to face

My city or mountains

Stay with me stay

I need you to love me

I need you today

Give to me your leather

Take from me

My lace

Take from me

My lace

Take from me

My lace

Willow and Tara chirped the last of the lyrics as the music faded out. The Slayer shrugged her agreement, "Yeah that's fine. Just let me find a song."

Anya appeared from the crowd, dragging Xander behind her. Bluntly she took the conversation over, flopping beside Lorne with a too bright smile." "So you're the guy that can tell us if we're going to be absolutely miserable and make our child's life a living hell like Xander's parents did to him?"

The Host looked between the bright eyed ex-demon and Xander who was shifting nervously from foot to foot. "Look, it's all about choices, kiddies, and I can't give you any more than that."

"Well that sucks. I thought you could see into people's futures and tell them what is going to happen to them." Anya pouted.

Xander remarked, "Ahn, hunny, I don't think he's like a crystal ball that can just tell us what's going to happen to us." He looked at the green demon questionably, "Right?"

"Right." Lorne answered.

The ex-demon whined, "I repeat, that sucks. What good is a fortune teller demon if he can't tell fortunes?"

Lorne sighed, "Hey, not a fortune teller, people. That implies hoop earrings, bad fake accents, and Tarot cards. I'm more of a guide you on the right path kinda guy. Let's face it, you crazy kids already found it in each other. What more is there for me to do?"

Anya squealed, "See? I told you everything is going to work out." She slapped her boyfriend in the chest with the back of her hand.

It wasn't long before Willow pulled Tara over to her friends. The shy witch's cheeks were the same color as her lover's hair. Tara's smoky eyes glittered with both embarrassment and joy. "I can't believe you got me to do that. You so owe me."

Willow teased, "Don't worry, baby, I'll pay you back when we get home." She turned to face the green demon. "So you're Angel's friend?"

Lorne indulgently confirmed his identity, "Yes and let me guess, you and Stevie over here want to see if you two crazy kidos have the long haul kind of love?"

Tara stuttered, "Oh n-n-no, Mr. Host, w-w-we just wanted to sing."

Willow grasped Tara's hands, "Yeah, No readings needed."

Lorne blinked his surprise back, "Well, that's a first, but now you did it. My inner couples' counselor feels the need to weigh in here."

Tara's eyes widened, "W-w-what d-d-did you see?"

Lorne comforted the shy girl, "Nothing you don't already know, my little lion girl. But honesty and listening to your partner is something that everyone can appreciate." The Host's gaze shifted toward Willow, "Remember, magic is dangerous and should not be taken lightly by anyone. Especially when one can bend it so easily to their will." Willow and Tara looked at each other, their minds playing with Lorne's cryptic warnings.

The sound of a sad guitar plucked over the speakers as the falsetto of Buffy's voice rang out over the club.

Stranger than your sympathy

And this is my apology

I killed myself from the inside out

And all my fears have pushed you out

Her eyes scanned the crowd as demons shot poisonous glares her way. Her unskilled voice stumbled over the lyrics.

And I wished for things that I don't need

(All I wanted)

And what I chased won't set me free

(It's all I wanted)

And I get scared but I'm not crawlin' on my knees

Oh, yeah

Every thing's all wrong, yeah

Every thing's all wrong, yeah

Where the hell did I think I was?

Demons got up from their chairs, exiting the club in a huff. _Well maybe if I can't slay demons the old fashion way my voice will do the trick for me._

And stranger than your sympathy

Take these things, so I don't feel

I'm killing myself from the inside out

And now my head's been filled with doubt

We're taught to lead the life you choose

(All I wanted)

You know your luck's run out on you

(All I wanted)

And you can't see when all your dreams aren't coming true

As the club crowd thinned she spotted a shot of neon white hair sitting in the back corner. Buffy skipped over the next line in the song as she watched Angel sit across from him.

It's easy to forget, yeah

When you choke on the regrets, yeah

Who the hell did I think I was?

And stranger than your sympathy

And all these thoughts you stole from me

And I'm not sure where I belong

And nowhere's home and no more wrong

And I was in love with things I tried to make you believe I was

And I wouldn't be the one to kneel before the dreams I wanted

And all the dark and all the lies were all the empty things

Disguised as me

Blue eyes met green as the song concluded. This wasn't supposed to happen, she was supposed to go back to Lorne to listen to her reading but her feet had other ideas. They carried her to the back corner. Spike gave mocking applause to her performance. "Interesting rendition of the Goo Goo Dolls there, luv. It was almost as ear bleedin as the real thing."

With a glare she whirled on the vampire. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Trying to get a girl out of my head." Spike answered "What brings you to good ol' L.A.

Buffy huffed, "Oh please, why I'm here is none of your business." She turned on Angel, "Mind making with the explanations? You are supposed to be watching Dawn back at the hotel, remember?"

Angel explained, "Dawn is save, she's at Cordy's place doing the whole hair and nails thing. Spike dropped by my place with some information about your dad that I thought you would want to hear."

Buffy fumed, "Really now? How convenient. Did my dad just give you a script of lies to tell me this time or did you get to make it up yourself?"

Spike's jaw ticked, "Look, Slayer, it was a right shitty thing that I didn't tell you the whole truth about your da', but at the time it seemed like the best course of action." The Slayer shot him the same touch-me-and-I'll-dust-you-stare that she had been giving Spike since his confession. "Please, Buffy, I was and am on your side. Just listen. Your da's office hasn't figured out I'm off the payroll so I was able to get information out of his desk girl. Some big wig council wants you dead. They've already failed twice using Cujo and Finn, the third time you might not be as lucky. You need to go into hiding until this mess is solved."

The Slayer winced at Riley's name. "What are you talking about?"

Angel jumped in, "Someone drugged Riley to make him act the way he did. Whoever did it wanted him to do what he did and kill you in the process."

Her voice had become very small in the large club, "Let me get this straight. What you guys are telling me is my dad is working with some creepy council that sent my ex to kill me in the worse possible way?"

Angel reminded, "We don't know that. Wes is looking into this shady council but until then we don't know anything and you need to go into hiding."

Buffy refused, "I'm not hiding." She looked back to the group at the bar before snarling, "I have to finish my reading with Lorne."

She stormed away, heading back to her friends, Spike and Angel trailing behind. Lorne gave her a chirp smile, "I see you found Broody and Moody." He gestured to the stage, "So, Billy Idol, are you going to give us a song?"

"No." He spat, "Buffy, we need to get the hell out of here now."

The Slayer glared, "Go away, Spike." She turned on Lorne, "Now, do you have any helpful information or just clever remarks?"

The Host put up his hands in retreat, "Okay, okay, easy, Blondie." He looked to the rest of the group, "Jeez, is she always this high strong?"

Spike chuckled, "Oh you have no idea. I think this is the longest she's gone without punching something in the nose unjustifiably."

Buffy grumbled, placing her hands on her hips. "Maybe if you wouldn't lie, I wouldn't punch you in the nose."

"Oi, I didn't lie. I just didn't tell the whole truth. Huge difference."

The thin explanation fell on deaf ears, "Right, because saying you have no ulterior motives for helping me when really you have nothing but ulterior motives is totally not lying!"

Lorne attempted to stop the battle of words, "Let's break this up before it get messy. Buffykins, sweetheart. Listen, you can kill him later but you need him for a while. " He turned to Spike, "Okay, crumb cake. You need to take her through the Looking Glass." Quickly he wrote something on a piece of paper. "Here's where you can find it. Remember to ask for Alice."

With a roll of her eyes Buffy remarked, "What, no Mad Hatters or stoned caterpillars?"

Chapter End Notes:

Lyric From:

'Leather and Lace', By Stevie- **watch?v=iLEMiDrdSKU &list=RDiLEMiDrdSKU**

'I got you Babe', Sonny and Share- **watch?v=ylGrQVL774k**

'Sympathy', By the Goo, Goo Dolls- **watch?v=OldbtlLGx7o**

As always Big Thanks to Whisperrr for editing


	15. Cotton Tail

Cotton Tail

Chapter Fifteen

Rain rolled off the towering buildings that littered downtown LA. Pedestrians traveled closer to store awnings on their way to some place dry, constantly stepping on one another in their pursuit. There's something about rain battering the sidewalks in the late summer evening that makes everything smell just a little more metallic and the city just a little more crowded, Spike remarked to himself as he guided Angel and the Scoobies down the busy LA streets. Lorne had written down the name of the club but had neglected to give a proper address. In a message that had been every bit as cryptic as Angel in his early days as a champion, Lorne had said, "The White Rabbit could only be found by the Soulless," then the Host had pushed them out into the rain before they scared away any more of his costumers.

Now, from the corner of his eye, Spike watched as the Slayer trailed beside him with the patented pout on her luscious lower lip. That poncey poet of days long past would've a written a soddin' sonnet about that lower lip. Damn, that woman is gonna drive me around the bloody bent.

Angel walked a little closer to Buffy, their hands unintentionally brushing against one another as they followed Spike's lead through the bustling streets. The two ex-lovers made goo-goo eyes at each another, making Spike's jaw tick with the murmurings of jealousy. With a scowl he bristled, "You know, this is really a two man job. Peaches, perhaps you could take your dead weigh back to the fortress of broodingness and me and the Slayer can go see this Alice bint on our own."

Angel grumbled before sweeping up Buffy's hand, "Not going to happen, Spike."

Subtly, Buffy pulled away from Angel, ambling to Spike's side with a whine in her voice. "How much further? This rain is ruining my shoes." she looked down at her strappy suede sandals with a little grimace.

Spike shrugged while scanning the boarded up store fronts with as much interest as one has for lint. "I think it's just up here," his eyes narrowed on an old theater that still had Casablanca playing. He couldn't say why the broken down theater was the place to go, just that it was. It was like hot breath on his ear whispered, "Follow me down the rabbit whole."

Soon everyone was gathered around the ticket station, well out of the rain.

Xander peered into the dark gloom of the old box office, "Why do I get this unmistakable feeling that the bleach wonder just led us on a wild goose chase?" He glared at Spike, "I mean, this is a trap, right? He's working for Hank after all."

A little more desperately than he intended, Spike looked to Buffy with a frown, "I am not working for Hank. I quit after the whole Captain Cardboard fiasco."

Angel sighed, hating to agree with Spike, "This is the place. I can feel it."

Buffy nodded, "Fine, let's go in. Anyone who wants to wait outside can stay right here." She stormed inside, not caring who followed.

Anya whined, peering into the door Buffy vanished through, "Okay, personally I say this is a mission for the Slayer and her vampy friends, not a pregnant woman and a father to be, so who wants to go back to the not wet and slightly the new less creepy Offices of Angel Investigations with me and get a nice large pizza with pickles and onions on it?"

Willow scrunched her nose, clinging to the theater as a gust of wind brought some of the rain in, "Ewe," she said.

Anya sighed, "Why do you do that?"

Willow looked at Xander for an explanation. Only, he had none so he merely shrugged, as confused as Willow, so the witch asked, "Do what?"

"Criticize me." She snapped like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You do it all time and I am gonna say it out loud right now, I'm tired of it." She glared at her boyfriend, "Xander, tell her to stop."

Xander watched as Angel and Spike fled into the theater, "What was that, Angel... you need me to come right into a possible ambush right now? Okay." He too fled into the building.

Anya glared at Xander's disappearing form, "Men. Thanks for the loyalty!"

Willow groaned, "I wasn't criticizing."

"Yes, you were." Anya's lip trembled with a year worth of suppressed rage. "You've never liked me." She stomped her foot in true Anya style and conviction, "I want you to finally say it."

Willow looked to her girlfriend for help but all Tara did was smile, "Ummm, uh, I think the others might need help. You know, this whole trap or not a trap thing." She vanished inside the club behind Xander.

Willow groaned, "Do we really have to this now?"

Anya glared, "Yes we do. I am going to be around a long time in one way or another. I am the mother of Xander's unborn child. Do you understand that?" She stared down the witch with the over thousand years of experience as a vengeance demon burning in her eyes. " I am tired of the scathing looks and annoyed politeness from you." Hissing now, she fumed, "You don't like me."

"Look, it's raining, my feet hurt, I really just want to get inside, so is there any way we can put a pause button on this conversation?"

Anya stomped her foot again, this time much like a child, "No."

"Of course I don't like you. You're a vengeance demon whose sole purpose in life is to make every man on earth's life miserable!"

She stormed in with Anya on her heels. "Well that's too bad, missy. I love Xander and guess what? I am not a demon anymore! And-" Mid speech Anya slammed into Willow's back. Both women were rendered silent.

The smell of sex and opium was suffocating for the humans in the room. Willow, Buffy, and Xander had never seen a place like the White Rabbit before. It was as if the gang had stumbled into a scene from Arabian Nights with bunnies instead of a djinn. Beautiful, exotic women in garish costumes wore white rabbit ears and cotton tails as they served men that were clustered around large ornate hookahs. Yet these men's leering gazes were not ogling the scantily clad waitresses. Their greasy stares were fixed to a stage at the opposite side of the room where more women, both demon and human, danced hypnotically. Some men would whisper to the waitresses and they would be pulled to a red door that led to the girls' dressing rooms.

Anya and Willow stared at each other, for once coming to a silent agreement. The witch's voice cut through the whine of some brass horn playing in the background, "I'm going with the theory that this white rabbit guy is really Hugh Hefner in disguise."

"Oh really? I was going to guess the Sultan of Dubai." Anya remarked, squeamish of the rabbit eared women. With a note of panic scrambling forward, she admonished, "What kind of place is this? Why are we here, Xander? What kind of rabbits are we dealing with?" Her nose scrunched and with voice as whiny as the brass saxophone playing over them, she said, "You know how I feel about rabbits."

Willow put a comforting arm around the ex-demon, "You know, Anya, I don't think there are any real rabbits here. Just objectified women in bunny ears."

Anya pouted, "If I was still a vengeance demon I would grant all these poor women wishes." With a glare she hissed at her boyfriend, "Why do you drag me to places like this?"

Willow squeezed Anya's shoulder, "Yeah, Xander, you should know better."

Xander, more confused than ever, just looked at Buffy, "Great, now they agree on something."

Buffy turned to look at him, "Xander, in their defense you should have seen it coming. Really, what did you think we were going to find at a place called the White Rabbit? Spiders, bears? I have to say I am disappointed in you. I mean, how could you bring your newly pregnant girlfriend not only to a brothel, but place she is afraid of?" She moved into the crowd, hopefully putting out the argument before it began.

"Okay what? Did I miss something? Because it wasn't my idea to come here." Xander's gaze shifted between Spike and Angel, hoping for some support, "Come on, guys, a little help here from the none estrogen portion of the group?"

Angel scanned the crowd, his mind looking for routes of attack inside the club. "I have to agree with the girls on this one. In fact, I'm pretty sure it was suggested you and the others go back." he reminded before his large feet trailed behind Buffy.

Xander looked to Spike hopefully, certain the bleached vampire would take his side just to spite Angel, "Sorry, mate, you're not going to win this one. It's classless to bring your lady love to a brothel but it's even worse while she's knocked up. After all, who knows what she could catch here." He patted Xander on the shoulder in a mockery of support. "Best find a pretty bauble to give to your demon honey to go with your apologies."

"Catch?" yelled Anya, "What can I catch? Nobody said I could catch anything. You are a terrible boyfriend."

"Fine." agreed Xander, "It's true, and yes I am a terrible boyfriend. Can we just get the hell out of here now?"

Anya's mouth dropped down to the floor as she observed yet another scantily dressed woman move about, "Okay, wasn't this Alice supposed to be an oracle or something? Cause in my day oracles were not… well." She gestured to a blue skin girl stripping off the remains of her top. "Xander, you will not be getting orgasms tonight."

"Hey, wait a minute," called Willow, "Where is Tara, she was here when we came in?"

"What, she is gone?" asked Xander, unable to hide his relief over the subject change.

"Oh, wait, there she is talking to that strippy girl." Willow sighed letting a warm smile smooth her worry. "I will check it out. She might have learned something."

Angel mused, "I wonder what she learned."

Spike grinned, "Yep, best go check it out then."

Xander looked in confusion at Anya. "Uh, would you be okay if I…? "He trailed off, glancing at the blue girl and Tara, the implication of 'Can I go, too, honey?' etched across his face.

"Short answer, you do and I will suddenly remember how to be a vengeance demon again. You don't want me to do that, do you?"

Xander joked "I feel this is a start of a unhealthy relationship. I mean, where is the trust?"

"It's nowhere near the half-naked blue skinned strippy girl. That's where. It's with me, your pregnant girlfriend. Now stay."

Buffy took charge, "Let's just find this Alice and get out of here." She pushed through the crowds of men to get to a bar that looked like it had been a concession stand in a past life, back when the club had really been a theater. Seconds from her attempt to wave over a purple girl with unreasonably large breast, a glimpse of silver hair and twinkling green eyes caught her attention. Instantly she whirled on the streak of platinum hair chatting up the stripper. A cold fury raised her voice enough to catch Spike's attention. "What the hell is this?"

Spike, uncertain of what had provoked Buffy's anger but fairly sure it had something to do with him, looked around the club for a trigger. Soon he followed the slayer's eye line to Hank happily huffing away on his hookah.

A pit formed in his stomach when he saw the wide eyed look of betrayal cross his slayer's features. Spike abandoned his chat with the nameless stripper to go to Buffy's side. "I swear I didn't know he was here, pet." He needed to make her understand that he had nobly turned his back on Hank for her. There was no denying it - he was in love with her and after that horrible night with Riley he was hell bent to make her see that.

Hands on her hips and mouth pursed in a scowl, she spat, "Like I believe that. I knew this was a scam."

Angel could see it in Buffy's eyes and the way she shifted her weight on the balls of her feet that she was going to bolt from the club. Before she could move, he grabbed her arm. "Buffy, I think he's telling the truth." The older vampire took in the lounge, noting the fuzzy cotton tales and long floppy rabbit ears on the dancers. "This is the White Rabbit."

The Slayer hissed, "Since when do you stand up for Spike?" She put her hands on her hip with a demand on her lips, "Don't you guys hate each other?"

Angel looked at the younger vampire he trained so many years ago. Ever so reluctantly, he exhaled a grumbling sigh, "We've come to an understanding." Spike's eyes darted to meet Angel's. For once Spike was at a loss for words as Angel confirmed, "He's not lying."

Xander was dumbfounded, "Now you two have come to an understanding. Where was the understanding when I was under unjust accusations? Nowhere, that's where." He stared at Buffy; "Really, you are going to believe this? From them, Broody and Moody? Come on, Buff."

Tara spoke up, "M-maybe-be we should see this Alice. Hank doesn't look like he is here to cause trouble."

Xander looked at Anya, "Okay, I am just going to say it. Is Tara like some kind of invisible witch? I mean, it's like she disappears and reappears in the oddest way. It is a little creepy. Sometimes I think she is ghost like. Other times I think she is too nice for words. What do you think?"

His coffee eyes begged Anya for some kind of support. Yet all she did was give him a gentle sort of smile that screamed, 'I could have done better but I love you anyways,' before smoothing the waters over, "No, dear, she's just stealthy. Good witch. Okay?"

"Fine, I'm the bad guy for bringing it up."

"Yes you are", said Willow, jumping into the conversation with Tara at her side.

"How long have you been there?" He asked Willow with a bit of guilt.

"Long enough, Xander, long enough," She said, her almost blue eyes screaming their disappointment at her longtime friend. Willow grabbed Tara's hand and disappeared into the club.

"Great, now I have two witches mad at me."

"Yep, hopefully they won't turn you into anything unnatural," Anya exhaled, grabbing her lover's hand, "Now, I am going to try and avoid any venereal diseases. Come along." Anya vanished with Xander at her side into the swell of people.

Buffy huffed with an exaggerated snort. "Yep, let's split up. Because that always goes according to plan." She called after the Scoobies who had already coupled off, leaving her between Angel and Spike. They trailed behind her despite her protest.

her curiosity got the better of her, making her unable to focus on her search for Alice. Why is Hank here? Determined to find out, it took all her cunning to ditch her vampire bodyguards. All so she could slowly creep closer to Hank's table. He's talking to someone. Who is it? With measured steps she inched closer to make out scraps of the conversation that could not be heard over the electronic blast of music. Though the conversation was muffled, that refine British accent was unmistakable. Giles? Why on earth would Giles be here? The Slayer's stomach flipped as she backed away. Every retreating step was like walking through syrup. He lied. He said he was going to England and look, there he is. Was he working for Hank too? Is that why he didn't question Spike's sudden change of heart?

Hank looked at Giles and smiled, "Don't try to go anywhere. I'll be right back." He could feel Buffy's immediate entrance into the White Rabbit. Patiently, he had waited for her to come over, busying himself with Giles' translations of some ancient text no one cared about. When she decidedly chose not to make herself known to him, he got up from the table, following a flash of golden blonde hair. A smile curled on his lips as Hank spun toward his daughter, following her through the intoxicating crowd. Jovially, Hank reminisced, "You've been doing this type of stuff since you were a little girl. I swear you were impossible to plan surprises for. You would hide on top of the stairs when me and your mom would be trying to plan something. Then I would catch you and you would retreat."

Chapter End Notes:

Sorry this took so long to get up. I just moved in to new place and start a new job so not much time for writing.

As always big thanks to Whisperrr for editing this chapter.


	16. Ask Alice

Ask Alice

Chapter sixteen

Hank cut her off at the back exit by looping around the dancers while Buffy was making her way through the sea of bodies. With a loud thud that knocked the air out of her, Buffy was face to face with her father. Gently he grabbed her forearms so she would not attempt to run from him. A toothy grin that was both smug and mocking sharpened the curve of his jaw and darkened his eyes. "Now, kitten, are you going to be polite and come over to greet Mr. Giles willingly or am I going to have to drag you over there kicking and screaming?"

"Don't touch me," She hissed, twisting away from his grasp as two well-muscled security guards strolled over to them. Casually she shifted into a fighting stance that only a well-trained warrior would pick up on.

Hank spotted the two men and waved them off. Once again he grabbed his daughter a little rougher than needed. "You see, kitten, me and Mr. Giles have been having a bit of a debate about your future and what not. And there is just no reasoning with him about some things so I feel, seeing how this is your life, that you should settle the matter." He dragged her to the table and shoved her into a chair. Hank waved over the security personnel. Their eyes flashed gold in the smoke of the club. Hank addressed the larger man that just had one of those forgettable faces that made him perfect for lurking about, "Please bring my daughter's associates to me. And for the table, a fresh round of coals and some B positive."

Mr. Forgettable replied in an equally forgettable voice, "Bringing the children over will be easy. However, the vampires will be harder to persuade to come over peaceably. Would you like us to use force, sir?"

Hank waved the notion away like a pesky gnat, "Nonsense, simply explain to them that the slayer and I are eager for their arrival. They should come on their own accord."

"Understood." The lackey replied.

The guards vanished as Hank sat back down in his leather chair. He puffed on the long hose before speaking to his daughter, "Now, do you wanna wait for your friends or get some explanations out of the way now?"

Buffy's answer didn't matter, before she could say yes or no Spike and Angel came charging to the rescue. A coy sort of smile brushed Hank's lips. "Well, nice to see you again, Spike. Angel, it's a pleasure. It's been a long time since hell." He gestured to the two empty arm chairs. "Please sit. I have some blood on the way for you two unless you dusted Charles and Mathew before they could place my order."

Angel scowled, "No need, we're leaving and Buffy's coming with us."

Hank puffed languidly on the long rubber hose, the hookah gurgling with the inhale of smoke. His green eyes looked the two vampires up and down, unimpressed by both of them. Exhaling the smoke he said, "Alright, John Wayne. Everyone will be able to walk right out of the White Rabbit as soon as Buffy hears me out." Soon Willow, Tara, Anya, and Xander were dragged into the scene by two other vampires and were seated around Buffy. Hank once more addressed Angel and Spike, "Please have a seat. Anyone wants anything? It's on the house. I own this place."

The two Aurelius vampires saw they were outnumbered and took their spots at the table. Buffy glared between Giles and Hank, "First of all, what in the hell is going on? Why do you have Giles?" More sympathetically, she looked over at her watcher, "Are you okay?"

Giles glared at Hank, "For a hostage I'm doing quite well. And to answer part of your earlier questions, Hank abducted me to translate stolen works form the Watcher's Council Libraries."

Smoke dripped from Hanks lips, "Come on, Rupert, abducted is such an ugly word. I merely commandeered your services for an undisclosed amount of time. You weren't harmed in any way."

Giles narrowed his eyes at the lawyer. "You had your goons dangle me off a building."

A little stoned, Hank laughed, "Pish posh. That was only to save face. After all, if I let you get away with being all defiant then soon everyone will think they can get away with disobeying me. And soon nothing is getting done and it will be just work, work, work all day long."

Buffy scowled, "I still don't get it. Why are you doing this? Kidnapping my watcher, hiring my ex-mortal enemy, moving back to Sunnydale, showing up here. Why?"

Hank sighed, "Is it so hard for you just to believe that I want to help my daughter?" For all his faults he did not wish to see either of his daughters dead. If I can just make her see.

"Yes," Buffy folded her arms looking far older than her nineteen years.

Hank looked at Spike, "How much have you told her?"

Spike coldly answered, "As much as I know."

Hank groaned, "You know, I really should've just dusted you after you quit. It would've made my life infinitely easier." He shook his head, "Anyway, all I have done has been to protect you and your sister. I might be an evil son a bitch but I do love my children. Even the ones who aren't really my children."

Buffy tilted her head, "What are you talking about?"

Once again Hank waved the question away, "Not important right now. The important thing is you. You have lost your powers. The Council of Supernatural and Demonic Affairs wants you dead, the Watchers Council wants you dead and Wolfram and Hart has decided to help both parties in achieving their mutual goal."

Willow finally ventured the question, "Why would the Watchers Council want Buffy dead? Wouldn't that completely wipe out the slayer line?"

Angel shook his head, "No. According to Wesley, Buffy is the last physical link to the old slayer. If she were to die, then that physical connection would be gone. However, it wouldn't destroy the spiritual link. In fact, theoretically, Buffy's death could reset the line."

Hank smirked, "Gold stars for Angel Investigations. You Scoobies really need to pick up the game here. I mean, they've only been on the case three days and they already know killing Buffy might save the day. You guys have had what, two months now? And you couldn't figure that one out."

Xander glared, "We don't want Buffy dead. She's our friend."

Hank nodded, "Right you are. None of us want Buffy dead but the problem is there are two powerful organizations that do, for one reason or another. You have no way of stopping them from getting what they want. That's one of the reasons I hired Spike in the first place to keep these organizations from killing my daughter." Sad eyes stared at Buffy longingly.

Buffy rolled hers at the display, "Not buying it. You're forgetting Spike told me you also hired him to spy on me."

Hank gave a sad sort of smile, "So sue me I wanted to know what's going on in your life. God forbid you actually tell me something."

Buffy laughed, "Oh my god, you're not trying the guilt thing, are you? Cause I'm so over falling for that. Your law firm is trying to kill me, remember? And it doesn't matter what spin you try to put on it. You sent a crazy giant dog and my ex-boyfriend to murder me."

"Those attempts were amateur at best and incomplete at worse. If I wanted you dead, you would not be here right now. And if my orders had been followed at the time, Riley wouldn't have been able to walk again let alone kill anyone." He narrowed his eyes at Spike, "Instead someone had to go impress the girl by quitting and being noble before neutralizing Riley."

Spike snarled, "Wait a tick. You are not blaming me for that fuck up! One phone call vetoing your underlings' plan would have done the trick just as well as me ripping off that wanker's head."

Mouth agape, Hank hissed, "I have a part to play. You had orders, you didn't follow them. My daughter got hurt because of it. I should dust you for your failure."

Buffy glared at her father, "There will be no dusting of Spike. What happened with Riley is not his fault."

Hank nodded his agreement. "Fine. Before I digressed, I was trying to say that the attempts on Buffy's life will not stop. Either by the Council or the CDSA Buffy will die. There are only two options. One - you perform a ritual to bring the slayers back which may or may not result in your death. Or two - you drink this." He pulled out a vile of glowing liquid. "It's from the fruit that bloomed on the tree of life. It will give you real immortality. Nothing will ever be able to kill you. You will be stronger than you ever were as a Slayer."

Her throat went dry. It was there, her chance to be all she was and more, just a breath away. It shined brightly in the club, tempting the slayer. "Right. What's the catch?" She whispered.

"You know, you're just like your mother. You two always have to ask questions. Why can't you just enjoy the gift of immortality and live your life to the fullest."

"Dad, please. The catch, what is it?" It was the big eyes and the way Buffy said dad in that way that made Hank loosen his lips. He needed to find the right words. A lie would be the safest way for him to get her to take the gift. Only lying about such a thing felt wrong in the last shred of humanity Hank carried. Slowly he took a drag off the hookah. It gurgled and bubbled, making the silence all the more noticeable.

Soon he exhaled a bloom of smoke that smelt suspiciously like raspberries. "You give up your humanity and both the physical and spiritual link to slayers will be gone forever. But does that matter? Humanity is overrated and the whole one girl in all the world thing is outdated anyway."

Giles frowned looking to his Slayer, "Buffy, no more slayers means the end of the world. You cannot take Hank's offer, however tempting."

Hank sneered, "So much for your fatherly love for MY daughter. You don't give a shit if she dies during that horrible ritual."

Giles spat, "How dare you. I promise you if Buffy dies during the ritual it will be more painful for me than you could possibly imagine." he cleaned his glasses and Buffy squeezed his hand in support.

The taste of jealousy sat heavy on Hank's tongue. There was just something about that sweet comforting look Giles and Buffy gave each other that made his eyes roll at the exchange, "Not your kid. Stop pretending she is. Because if she were, you wouldn't encourage her to do it."

Gilles fumed, "Said by the man who put his daughter in the position to be raped and murdered, not caring a lick if his youngest would have found her violated body!"

Hank slammed his fist on the table, "It was never supposed to get that far!"

Buffy stared listlessly at the coals dying out completely and turning white from their time on the hookah. Her green eyes burned from unshed tears. She hissed low and deadly, her throat dry, "Shut up both of you about that. We already covered this portion of the conversation. Riley's an easily manipulated monster, Spike was noble at the wrong time and my dad set the whole thing up. Can we please move on?" She looked at her father, betrayal so deep in the well of her eyes that it made Hank's heart sink. For a moment he longed for her to be three again so he could scoop her up in his arms and just take her away from all this.

Xander attempted to break the tension with a joke, "So about this ritual? What does Buffy have to do? Fire up some candles and make with the goat slaughtering?"

Back to the problem at hand, Giles took over this portion of the explanation, "Not quite as wholesome, I'm afraid." He sighed, starting his lecture, desperately trying to intellectualize the conversation as much as possible, "According to remains of Tatamy's works that Hank stole from the Watcher's council there was this shaman who created the ritual to bring about the Slayer. The shaman forced his bravest daughter to retrieve and eat a dragon's heart. Before taking away all her worldly possessions. Then the shaman painted her in human blood and left her chained to a rock far from their village so the old gods may know her and judge her worthiness. Roughly six months later the shaman returned for his daughter, finding her fat with child. The mother of slayers would die and the child, a girl, became the first slayer and was raised by her grandfather."

Hank grabbed his daughter's hand, "You don't have to do any of that. You don't have to kill dragons and eat their heart. You don't have to get raped by some champion from the PTB. You don't have to die in child birth. You have a choice. You can take this." She jerked her hand away suddenly understanding why Hank allowed Riley to be drugged. He scooped up her hand again kissing her knuckles before he pressed the vile into her palm. She flinched at the show of tenderness. Once again she pulled away, holding the glowing vile. "You will be stronger than any slayer before you. You'll never age again. And you can still fight evil if you want to."

Giles sighed, "I won't lie to you, Buffy, this is a terrible situation. But you have to do it. Slayers are important to the balance of the universe. Without them everything falls out of whack."

Xander stared at Giles like he grew a second head, "You can't actually be saying that Buffy has to give birth to some creepy half human, half demon child. That is just sick and wrong."

Anya gasped, "So it's sick to have children with me?"

Xander eyes grew in horror, "No, didn't say that."

Anya was tearing up at this point, "I was a demon for most of my life, Xander. There are still parts of me that are demonic. So if it is sick and wrong to have demon children, then you think it's sick and wrong to have them with me."

Xander protest, "Oh god, no, honey, I love every part of you and if our child has a little demon in it there would be no parts that would be wrong."

Anya smiled, "So you're okay about having the baby?"

Xander started but never finish, "Well…"

Anya started kissing him, "You will be having lots of sex tonight"

Angel grumbled, "Back to our original point. Giles is right. You have to do this ritual."

Willow saw Buffy withdraw into herself, "There has to be another way."

Giles explained, "All our other resources have turned up nothing so if we wish to have another slayer then this is the only way."

Tara's quiet voice cut through the table's uproar. "Hank, you said champion." She looked around the table, her smoky eyes found Buffy longing to flee. "Isn't Angel a champion for the Powers?"

The table fell silent. Reaction that ranged from horror in the case of Hank and Spike, resided acceptance from Giles and Xander and an excited smile from Willow. Strangely enough, no reaction came from the would-be parents. Both Angel and Buffy wore masks of stone.

Hank scoffed, "I hate to burst everyone's bubble but Angel isn't the guy. Hell, knowing the big guy upstairs, he's most likely going to send the most demon-y thing that he ever made to test Buffy's devotion to the Powers."

Longingly, Angel stared after Buffy's shrinking form. "He's right, you know. It can't be me. I could lose my soul again."

Hank tried to soften his hardened features before directing his green eyes to the matching set that were on his daughter's face. "Kitten, look at me."

She met her father's eyes, swallowing back tears at the unfairness of her world. The vile felt heavy in her hand. She listened to her father's gentle coo, "What's the down side here really? You can still save the world and protect the Hellmouth. Only now you're unkillable."

Buffy finally spoke, "I can still protect the innocent?"

Hank smiled, "Yes, Kitten. You won't be any different."

Dread filled Spike's system. "That's a lie." The temptation was in her eyes. It would be easy to push her into that direction. Whispered memories of his mother flooded his mind. Bloody hell, can't let her do it. Might as well just give her sodding Angel. A slow and sad sight escaped Spike's lips as he studied his slayer's unreadable face. "You'll lose your humanity. You won't be you anymore, not in the important ways."

Giles shook his head, "I can't believe I'm saying this but Spike's right. Buffy, the loss of your humanity will make you no different from the demons you hunt. I know this is terribly unfair for you. Most likely you will not survive the ritual but it's the right thing to do."

For a moment the debate was put on pause as a busty green girl wearing nothing but gold beads over her supple breast came over. She placed fresh coals on the hookah and put down two shots of blood in front of the vampires. The girl's sudden appearance at the table reminded Buffy of the reason why she came to the White Rabbit in the first place. Alice, she smiled to herself. The Slayer grabbed the waitress's arm, "Where's Alice?"

Lisa, the green girl, looked at the blond slayer. Her black hair hung loosely on one side trailing down her shoulder, when she tilted her head to the left. A note of apprehension crept into the green girl's throat. "You wanna see Alice?" Lisa's onyx eyes racked over the slayer. Buffy was not Alice's normal clientele. The Slayer positively reeked of a soul. "Why?" She squeaked, unable to puzzle out the slayer's appearance in the strange night club.

Buffy narrowed her eyes at the waitress who seemed to shift uncomfortably from foot to foot. The steel in her voice bore no argument. "Just take me to Alice."

Lisa squirmed, her eyes darting from the Slayer to Hank to the red door. A confident smirk sat on Hank's already smug features, "It's fine, she can go. The old seer's services are on the house."

She plastered on a fake smile. "Alright, this way." The group followed Buffy from her seat. Lisa sighed, shaking her head, "Only you can go."

Buffy smiled, "Fine, I'll go in alone."

Angel grabbed her arm, "Buffy, are you sure?" With a roll of her eyes that screamed her absolute exhaustion at the question, she was off without a word.

Down the narrow hallway the Slayer and the waitress went. Every step dragging them farther away from the main floor. Names like Sandi and Branbi over every door caught the Slayer's attention as moans from inside could be heard like a soundtrack from a bad porn. They walked and walked until Buffy started to regret her decision to come alone. Crap, I should have Angel come with me for backup. Certain that the waitress was going to lead her into a trap, she started to look for a method of an escape, when they stopped at a simple white door. It flung opened with an audible creek to reveal a girl with unearthly gold skin and chilling purple eyes that were too cat like for Buffy's comfort. With humor as her only defense Buffy joked, "So this is Alice. I wasn't aware you were related to the Oscar statue."

Alice's purple eyes narrowed on the Slayer. "Funny, Slayer. Good thing your sense of humor didn't abandon you with your powers." The ex-oracle folded her arms, leaning against the cracked doorframe. Her white nails tapped against her golden arm. Those strange lilac eyes landed on Lisa and Alice said, "Lisa, leave us."

Lisa nodded, "Of course," before she sashayed back to the main floor.

Alice removed herself from the threshold, leaving the door open for Buffy. Wordlessly she filed into the room. Her deep jade eyes scanned the plain bedroom for any sign of an attack. The gentle hum of Alice's voice stopped Buffy's search. "You know, I used to get offerings for readings." She sat down at her ivory vanity, her back to the Slayer.

Buffy watched Alice's nimble fingers break up and sprinkle herbs into a glass pipe. Catching the oracle's meaning, she searched her pocket for something to give but came up with nothing besides loose change. She stared into the back of Alice's head. Her curly black hair dipped past her shoulders like waves crashing on the shore.

Buffy shrugged a halfhearted offer, "Unless you want my toe ring and 75 cents I don't have any offerings for you."

Alice chuckled facing the slayer, pipe in hand, "It's okay, Slayer. I'm not technically an oracle. Which is fitting because you're not technically a slayer either." She pressed the pipe to her full lips. Carefully she flicked a lighter on, catching the herbs on fire. She held the intoxicating smoke in her lungs, allowing it to billow in her body, to ease the ways for her visions.

Buffy glared, "Lorne told me to talk to you. That you had answers for me. Now spill, I don't have all night."

She exhaled the smoke, filling the room with its perfume. "I think you need this more than me."

Alice stuffed the glass pipe in the Slayer's hand. Buffy grumbled, "I don't do drugs. Now, do you have answers or not?"

Alice shrugged nonchalantly waving Buffy's dismissal away. "You're too uptight. Now chill out, take a hit and remember I don't have to do anything."

Reluctantly Buffy put the pipe to her lips, inhaling the smoke before quickly hacking it out. "Happy?" She hissed as she passed the bowl back to Alice.

"I'll be happier when you mellow the fuck out. Jeez, nothing you do really matters. The ending is already written." Alice explained, plastering on a light lilac eye shadow followed by silver eyeliner.

Buffy's head started to buzz, the smoke working the intensity from her bones. "What do you mean?" She asked, suddenly fascinated with the shine in Alice's skin.

Once again Alice inhaled the sweet smoke, relishing in the way the smoke expanded in her lungs while it gave her an unnatural calm. She passed the pipe back to Buffy who robotically put it her lips. Smoke dripped from the seer's lips. "No matter what you do, the world ends. It gets reborn. So it has been, so it will always be. Whatever you choose to do doesn't matter. You take daddy dearest's offer, the overall outcome won't change. You do what your watcher wants, not a fuckin thing changes. Nothing you can do will change the big picture. The world will end, you will die during it."

This time there was no hacking when Buffy exhaled the smoke. Confused she asked, "Why choose?"

Finished with her eyes, Alice moved down to her lips painting them with a dark blackish red that was somewhere between blood and chili peppers. For a second Buffy couldn't help but wonder which one Alice's lips tasted like. I bet its chili peppers. Spicy would be good right now. Spike's lips are always kinda spicy with the taste of liquor and nicotine. No, no spicy bad. Bad Spike. Besides they are more sweet and cool… Okay spicy was wrong word all together. Focus! Chili pepper girl is talking.

Alice sighed with the Slayer's drifting thoughts. "You'll die in seven days otherwise."

"Oh that's good to know." However, the news didn't hit her as hard as it should have. The smoke dulled the words, leaving the Slayer uncaring about her possible death. "What should I choose?"

Alice smiled, "You're not asking the right questions."

"What are the right questions?"

Alice teased her curly black hair in a loose bun. "Choice is a beautiful thing. I didn't get to make choices when I was an oracle. I gave answers to heroes like lollypops, but no choices. The Powers already have what they want their heroes to do set in motion and it's the oracles' job to push them to the path."

Buffy grumbled, "That doesn't answer anything. In fact, it barely makes sense."

Alice removed her silk robe, unashamed of the curves of her hips or the course ringlets of black hair covering her womanhood. "You don't see."

A blush stained Buffy's cheeks. The Slayer refused to look any lower than the seer's lips when addressing her. "No…" Any retort that might have come out of Buffy's mouth trailed off when the oracle's lips pressed against her own. Uh it was peppers. The thought was fleeting as the could-bes poured into her brain. She saw herself drinking the vile, becoming darker with every loved one's death until she was absolutely alone. All the emotions, all the changes that the possible Buffy went through, the current Buffy felt. Heartbreak stained every interaction as time moved fast around the possible Buffy, until she was holding some faceless lover as he dusted in her arms. The last bit of the person she had been before the vile died away the moment his ashes hit the ground. Furious, she murdered every man, woman and child that was connected to his death until she wiped out an entire bloodline. Only the pain of being absolutely alone was too much and she opened the Hellmouth using herself as a sacrifice.

Current Buffy clutched the walls, looking to the uncaring Alice for support. The seer busied herself with the business of getting ready for her shift. Pearls white and glassy wrapped around her large breast, dripping off them seductively before she put on her white thong with the cotton tail.

Buffy cried out as the next part of the vision hit her. She performed Giles' ritual. She and her faceless lover were mating like two wild dogs, scratching and biting each other as they made love. Much to current Buffy's shock it was love. She loved the faceless man. I know that man. Who is he? He can't be Angel. But he's a champion for the Powers so it has to be him. It can't be anyone else. No, it can't be him. Soon the pain of childbirth shook her body making thoughts of the faceless man unimportant as Alice rushed to her aid.

The Slayer held onto Alice for dear life as her legs threatened to give out. "Oh god… no more." she moaned, her eyes red and sore from baring witness to every possible moment in her life. She even saw one of her possible selves jumping off a tower into a portal as the world crashed around her. It had become just too much, she felt her mother's passing and the need to protect her sister at all cost. Silently current Buffy mourned all her possible deaths.

Bile burnt the back of her throat, yet she refused to heave the contents of her dinner into the small waste basket. Alice, for her part, guided the slayer to her bed. Callously the seer let Buffy sob while she finished getting ready for her show.

Chapter End Notes:

Okay, I know this one is long. Hopefully I'lll cut the next one down to size to bit. As always big Thanks to Whisperrr for editing. And please Read and Review


	17. Lovers and Emenys

Lovers and Enemies

Chapter Seventeen

Buffy stumbled out of the red door feeling as if it had been a lifetime since she heard the bouncy music and jeering men of the main floor. Maybe it had been, she mused, her head still buzzing from the borrowed vision. I should go back to the table. She scanned the club for Giles, Hank, Xander, Angel, Spike, Anya, Willow, and Tara. There they all were, sat in the farthest corner of the White Rabbit, waiting for her answer. To be mortal and die before my first legal drink or to be immortal and go completely off my rocker by my 800th birthday. That is the question. She knew she should just destroy the small vile hidden in her blue jean pocket, yet the smallest part of her that she had deemed Bad Buffy or BB for short, told her to drink it and that Alice was a bitter oracle that was full of shit. The tension around the table was more palpable than the heavy curtain of opium and tobacco that lingered in the club. Nope, can't do it, it's too much. Hating herself for her own cowardice, she slipped wordlessly out the back. All she needed was time alone and a good brawl, something that Buffy was lacking since this whole thing began.

Rain still battered the sidewalks but it wasn't nearly as hard. Stars, bright like a promise of a good day, were starting to peek out from behind the black wool of cloud cover. Buffy sucked in the hot air of mid-august. College would start up soon, there were clothes to be bought on top of thick text books for courses she would never use if the yearly apocalypse had its way. An annoyed harrumph escaped Buffy's lips right before she kicked a sticky can still half full of beer down the alley way.

Soon she let her feet guide her down the narrow side streets of the industrial part of LA. Not the safest part of town to be in but she couldn't help the fact that she didn't care. 'Seven days,' the oracle had said. If I don't make a decision I'll be dead in a week. The Slayer paused in a streetlight, sensing that someone was following her and gave her patented Buffy snort of disgust she always gave to her long time enemy, Spike. And yes, he was still the enemy despite the fact she had to remind BB of that, every night since she woke up from that startling dream. A dream Buffy had only confessed to Willow about after the young Wiccan found her slobbering drunk outside of Spike's now abandoned crypt. It had been the night after she got out of the hospital. She had sobbed into her best friends shoulder, "Whysh, did I have to fallsh in love with a monstersh again?"

Willow had cradled her, not knowing the full spectrum of what had happened the night before. "Buffy, it's okay, just because Riley's a poop head who doesn't pick up his phone or answers his door doesn't make him a monster. Just a really bad boyfriend. Now let's go home. You're still hurt. Don't worry about Spike. He's gone. I promise you. Angel watched him clear out." The witch had helped her friend up and ordered the rest of the Scoobies to finish up the patrol without her. The slayer had sobbed to the witch the entire way home, muttering the whole unedited story of the last month events. Willow, for her part, was shocked. She had stayed the rest of the night, confronting her about the drunken tale the moment Buffy was sober. It had been noon by the time Buffy was ready to talk and Willow was waiting, "So before you puked on my shoe you were telling me about Riley."

Buffy frowned, "How much do you know?"

Willow poured her some OJ, "Enough to know that there's a really great spell that rips off a man's penis and turns it inside out with just a little herbs, chanting, and a picture of the man in question."

"Tempting but I want to handle Riley myself. No magic, no angry vampires, just some nice Slayery justice." Buffy stared into the orange liquid.

Willow bit her lip at the next part of the story. She had heard Buffy moaning her regrets about sending Spike away and how he wasn't evil anymore. Carefully she poked the nerve, "About angry vampires. Well not vampires per say, more like one angry vampire... with bleached hair and a british accent."

Buffy closed her eyes, willing her hangover to be gone, "What about Spike?" She cursed herself for her big mouth before internally pledging never to drink again.

Willow said a little reproachfully, "His chip has been out for a month?"

Buffy sighed, "Yes."

"And you didn't feel the need to tell anyone? I mean, how many times did Xander walk the razor's edge of death by insulting Spike because he didn't know the chip was gone?" Willow asked, mentally counting up the harsh words between the two men.

A blush stained Buffy's cheeks remembering a few of Xander's more colorful insults thrown Spike's way and the amount of self-control it took for the vampire only to retaliate with words instead of fangs. "No one got hurt." she smiled.

"Not the point and you know it." Willow huffed.

Buffy groaned, "Fine, what do you want me to say?"

Willow put her hand on her hip and said, "How about why cover for him?"

With that one question she confessed her love for the unsouled vampire.

Now, Buffy glared at a pile of shadows made by the graffiti covered dumpster, determined not to let herself love him. But that traitorous voice of BB reminded her that in seven days she would be dead. "Let me guess. You're not lurking. You're just standing about." She teased, unable to hide a small smile on her lips.

Spike sauntered from the shadows, "No, this time I was definitely lurking, luv."

She laughed, it couldn't be helped. She wanted him to follow. Not Angel, not Giles, not Xander, and not Willow. After longing to be alone the sight of Spike, his hair in ringlets from the rain and his kissable lips twisted into a half smile, made her soften and her heart rushed. "Of course." The small smile on her lips fell, realizing that this moment wouldn't last. Buffy peered down the gloom of the street. "Where's everyone else? Shouldn't the rest of the search party be arriving?"

Spike stepped a little closer. His rough hands itched to pull the Slayer close just so they could run through her wet hair. "Sorry luv, it's a search party of one." He explained, "Your band of merry men haven't figured out you've skipped out of the White rabbit yet."

"Why aren't you with them?" She folded her arms to keep the cold at bay. She longed to go someplace dry to think for a bit. It wasn't like she didn't already know what she was going to do. The facts were clear. The world needed a slayer. Yet she couldn't bring herself to go back and tell the others to start looking for dragons' heart on eBay or wherever you go to find them.

Spike studied the resigned looked in his Slayer's green eyes. He knew what she was going to do and it didn't involve drinking the juice from the fruit of life. He knew she was going to go through Tatamy's ritual the moment she walked through that red door looking for a plan C. Only there was no plan C where Buffy got her powers back and they ran off into the sunset.

Coolly Spike answered, "Needed some air. Harris was drivin me up the wall." Another half-truth, William admonished making him change his answer, "Fine… I saw you leave out the back and I figured you should have someone watchin your back. At least until this ritual nonsense is behind us." Suddenly Buffy found the cracks in the sidewalk the most interesting thing in the world. Spike's demon wanted to hoop with joy. I might just get the girl yet. William the picture of prim reminders explained, Sorry, mate, even if the slayer doesn't go through with it, she'll never be ours. Carefully he asked, "Unless we're saying bollocks to that pillock Tamaty's ritual and dear ol' Alice gave you another path all together?" Her green eyes sparkled with guilty tears. He had no words. In all scenarios he saw playing out, none included her willingly giving up her humanity. "Going with the fuck it option then? Immortality?"

The weight of the vile sat in her pocket It demanded her attention much like large heavy rock does when it's sinking you to the bottom of the river. She knew if she just crushed the vile the pressure would be lifted. There would be only one choice left but she couldn't. BB screamed in her head to take it or in seven days she will be dead. Buffy wiped away her tears, staring into blue eyes, "Would that be a bad thing?" She looked at Spike then in way she never looked at him. It was uncertainty laced with hope, but hope for what Spike didn't know.

"Buffy, I would follow you until the end whether you're the holier than thou Slayer or an immortal badarse like myself." He watched her finger her pocket. Before she slipped from his grasp he pulled the vile out. It glowed in the moonlight. "But I'm afraid for the latter option you need to drink this."

"Give that back." She snapped reaching for it as he held it out of reach.

Spike teased, "Not until we have a drink and you get to sleep on it a bit. Immortality is one of those you have it, you can't exchange it, kind of gifts."

With a little huff, Buffy pouted, "Fine. Lead the way."

He gave a nod and guided her to an old boarded up warehouse near Dock street. In her head she kept comparing the large empty building to both the factory and the crypt and found it lacking. It was just too cold and empty save for a few salvageable pieces of furniture which consisted of a stained armchair, a TV, and a clean mattress with a ratty blanket on it. "So these are the new digs then?"

Spike looked around the place with a fair amount of loathing. "No. Just temporary." He pulled out a non-descript bottle of whisky beside his arm chair. The top popped off with little effort on Spike's part before he wrapped his lips around the neck and took a long awaited swig from it. Then he grabbed a small red cooler no bigger than a lunch box, holding maybe three bags of blood. He handed over the bottle to Buffy as he ripped open a blood bag.

She took the drink with the same amount of gusto as Spike. Unlike vodka, the whisky burnt with a sort of piney aftertaste that made her nose scrunch up. Gasping a little, she said, "Yuck." The bottle was placed back beside the chair. Slowly the whisky did its work making her warm on the inside. Unable to stop the question Buffy asked, "Does that mean you're not staying in LA?"

Spike slurped down his blood. Carelessly, he watched her slump into his chair reaching for the bottle once more. William whined in his head, 'Tell her we want to go home! That we're sorry.' Spike hissed to his inner voice, 'Shut up.' He took the bottle from her and answered as coolly as possible, "Don't know. Would rather go back to Sunnydale with you. Better class of heroes there. Way more fun to harass."

He's asking if he can come back. BB, demanding and childish, wanted to say yes but that stubborn part of her that wouldn't take him out of the enemy box said, 'no,' loudly. She could feel the words, 'I miss you, please come home,' dig in the back of her throat, making it warm. Or maybe that's just the whisky. Thoughtfully, she half answered, "You couldn't kill." She took the bottle from him, washing down her response with a grimace. "Yuck."

Spike rolled his eyes, "Know that, luv. I don't intend to." He grabbed the bottled back from her grasp. Jade eyes stared at him, saddened by something Spike couldn't name. He swished the liquor around. Suddenly the bottle looked like the best place for answers. Another swig and another confession came to his lips, "I didn't kill him you know. Not for lack of wanting, mind you." He still wanted to. "I went to the Great Poof's mansion while he was prancing about your bed side. Scared the sodding cheerleader, knocked out Watcher Jr, and took the soldier all without breaking a sweat." The demon had been in control most of that night. It scared him a little that the demon had love the girl in front of him as much as the man in him did. He had assumed the affection for the Slayer had only steamed form the remains of William but then he had walked into the Summers home on that horrible night. The smell of sex and blood hit him over the head like a two-by-four. After that he rushed up the stairs uncertain if a scream or a moan dragged him to the bedroom. Blood thick and warm ran down Buffy's stomach like rivers while the soldier had his way with her. After that the demon was driving the ship while William sat in the back making color commentary.

Buffy didn't want to hear any more about Riley. After Alice the whole horrible event felt like a different lifetime for the Slayer. Yet she let Spike confess. She asked coldly, "What did you do to him?"

Another long swig tumbled down his throat as the story came out in drips, "Nothin really. Barely a slap and a tickle in comparison to what I would've done back in my fledgling days."

A visible wince came from the Slayer. "Not an answer, Spike. If you didn't kill him what happened to him?"

Blue eyes twinkled with wicked joy, "Nothin just... scared him a bit." The boy's screams still danced in Spike's head. "Don't know why he got all fussy about it. It's not like I roughed up the lad too badly. What's a little lighter fluid and cigarettes between rivals?" A toothy smile at his own wistful memory made Buffy smile for a moment. "It's not like I was really going to light him on fire."

Sarcastically, Buffy teased, "Flames are so not your thing."

Spike lit a cigarette, "What can I say, rather leave the pyro business up to you. Just give me a good rail spike any day of the week."

Laughter danced unbidden from Buffy's throat. Yes, it was wrong to laugh about the ways to kill your ex but it was oddly comforting to let it out. Once again she took the bottle from Spike. "A part of me wanted you to do it." Backtracking before the vampire took it as permission to finish the job, she added, "But I'm glad you didn't. Thank you, Spike." The liquor started to make her head fuzzy. "If you came back to Sunnydale, would you bag it?"

Spike shrugged, "Been bagging it, luv."

Buffy got off the chair and started pacing. She looked at him trying her best to look stern, "Would you betray me again?"

"Wasn't trying to betray you, Buffy." He sighed, tired of the accusation.

For once Buffy actually looked at Spike, not as her mortal enemy, not as a vampire on a leash, or not even as a possible lover; just as a man. A man who did love her despite all reason. Her face fell, knowing he wasn't her destiny. Her destiny belonged to a faceless man in the desert somewhere. He deserves more than I can give him. "You weren't trying to but you did." She stopped the protest by crouching in front of him and putting her fingers on his lips, "I know you think you were doing the right thing. But that's the problem." She paused shaking her head, hating herself for wanting him back. "That's why you shouldn't come back to Sunnydale." Resolved, she explained before she lost the nerve and kissed him, "You don't understand right and wrong. You might know the different between them but you don't understand them... not like someone with a soul would. And I can't be your conscience." She was too tired for this but it needed to be said, "If you come back to Sunnydale, it's not a matter if you will give me a reason to stake you, it's a matter of when. And for whatever reason, it will break my heart to have to kill you."

Once again Spike opened his mouth to protest. He had a million comeback lines as to why she was wrong yet never got the chance to say any of them. Her lips silenced him. They were soft and demanding and pulled him into a kiss that would have made a succubus blush. Buffy had meant the kiss to be a simple quick sort of thing but once it had started she couldn't end it. The taste of whisky and something purely Spike made her want more.

Breathless and flushed they broke apart. His eyes were wide and his lips were swollen. "Buffy," He whispered, summing up all his questions that popped and boiled in his head.

Alice's visions danced in Buffy's head and she hated both of them. I don't have any real choices. She stood a little straighter and started to back away. "I should go back. The others will be worried." Buffy could not bring herself to slip out the warehouse doors.

Spike grabbed her arms, "No, you don't. You don't kiss someone like that and leave." He pulled her close, grinding his hardened cock into her denim covered pelvis before kissing her again, long and hard.

She pulled away from him and he let her go. Angry, Buffy snapped, "I'm doing the ritual, Spike."

Sullenly Spike nodded, giving a self-deprecating smile, "I know, luv. Doesn't change anything for me." He closed the distance between them and kissed her tenderly before whispering in her ear, "Let me have you tonight. And you and Angel can kill dragons and eat hearts tomorrow." More desperately then he wanted, he begged, "Please, just for tonight, be with me."

Quietly she looked into the cement floor. The grey ashy stone reflected her mood to a tee. She loved Spike and there was no way she could be with him except for tonight. Suddenly Alice's rant about choices not mattering became so much clearer. It doesn't matter if for one night I give in. I'll still end up with Angel. There was a time that would have been comforting to know but now it made her stomach sink and her throat dry. Spike waited for her to make a move one way or another. Never good with words, Buffy tried to explain, "I don't want it to be him."

Whisky tears started to form in her eyes. Spike sat her on the bed, wiping them away. "Hush now." Bloody hell, my entire unlife in a nutshell - comforting some poor brokenhearted bint I'm in love with while she's hung up on the sodding pillock. He brushed her hair away from her face. "It won't be that bad. The curse is about one moment of happiness. Trust me when I say procreation is not going to trigger Angelus."

She leaned into the touch of cold fingers on her skin, "It's not about the Angelus thing. I don't love him anymore."

Never in Spike's wildest dreams did he ever imagine Buffy denouncing his grandsire. Yet there she was, crawling on top of him with warm hands roaming down his chest to undo his belt buckle while her mouth, warm and wet, devoured his in a dance of fire and ice. He let himself go in the moment, gasping as she rocked against him. Clothes were flying off like birds and landing around the warehouse floor in messy piles. He was drowning in her and a part of him wanted to laugh, relishing her warmth and the taste of her on his tongue. Dru is always right.

Buffy's soft rose petal lips gliding down his neck brought him out of the memory of his sire telling him he was in love with the slayer all those months ago. He had been blind. But now his eyes were wide open and all he could see was HER. With gentleness he didn't know he possessed, Spike slowly lowered the girl on the bed, hell-bent on making her forget all about rituals and destinies, about Angel and Riley. And he did.

The sun was starting to rise when the two of them finally blissed each other out. Settling in for a few hours of much needed sleep, Spike folded Buffy in his arms and held tightly on, never wanting to let go.

A smile crept on the slayer's lips, one that she wasn't even aware of, as she drifted off to a dreamless sleep.

Chapter End Notes:

Big thanks to Whisperrr. She actually wrote everything down from Dru.

Please Review it helps me write more.


	18. The Scoobies

The Scoobies

Chapter Eighteen

Blurry eyes, grey with a touch of green, stared down at the funny squiggly lettering, too tired to translate them into logical legible text. Giles whipped off his thin wire-framed glasses and scrubbed them furiously as if the grimy lenses were somehow to blame for the last several weeks. Buffy was MIA since vanishing through the red door. Giles, Willow, Xander, Angel, Tara, Anya, Spike, and Hank all waited for hours for her to return with some sort of answer to the looming question of 'what to do'. When she never came back the group slowly started to part ways, starting with Spike and ending with Hank.

Back at the Hyperion battle plans were erected. Angel paced around the lobby as his crew filtered in. Quick introductions were made for the newest member of Angel's team, Gunn, and the impromptu convergence of Angel Investigations and the Scoobies was complete. Angel started off the meeting, "Buffy's missing."

Gunn looked confused, "Okay, catch a brother up. Buffy's the superhero chick that Angel's all hung up on, right?"

Cordelia answered, "Yep, only she doesn't have her powers anymore because of some bad prophecy and blah, blah, blah, boring exposition."

Giles frowned, "Yes and if you had listened to said boring exposition you would know that if Buffy dies before completing an ancient blood ritual there will be no more slayers ever and the world will end." Already he wondered who would get to her first, the CDSA or the Watcher's Council. Hank was right; they lacked the man power to prevent either of the two fractions from getting their claws on the former slayer.

Wesley sighed, "We don't know that for sure. Her death could bring forth an unfound potential, therefore allowing us to have a new slayer."

Gunn jerked his head back, "Yo, that's heavy, man." He looked at Angel, "Is it like every girl you hook up with has to have some dramatic life or death problem?"

Cordelia laughed, "Oh, you have no idea. You should've seen those two; it was like the worst adaptation of Romeo and Juliet ever."

Willow whined, "I feel like we're getting off track here. We need to find Buffy before she gets killed. I think Tara and I have some supplies to do a locator spell but we need something of Buffy's to track her."

Angel shook his head, "A locator spell might not work if Hank's men got her. We should find Spike and get him to infiltrate Wolfram and Hart again to see if anyone there knows where she's being held." He took charge of the situation, "Gunn, Xander, go stake out Wolfram and Hart. See if Hank is making any late night trips to the office. Willow, Tara, try to see if you can find and talk to this mysterious Alice. Maybe she knows what happened to Buffy."

Willow interrupted Angel's orders, "That's a great plan but I'm willing to bet the White Rabbit is not going to be where we left it. Remember, only the soulless can find it which means it must move around."

Angel pondered, "There has to be a spell or something to guide you to it. Maybe Lorne or one of Wes's books has an answer. Cordelia, Anya go to Caritas and see if Lorne can tell us more about the White Rabbit while Willow and Tara hit the books to find some sort of locator spell for this place. Giles, Wes research more about this Tatamy thing. We don't know nearly enough about this ritual to consider performing it."

Giles glared at the vampire awith annoyance, "And what, pray tell, will you be doing?"

Angel rolled his eyes like it was obvious, "I'm gonna find Spike."

Cordelia dismissed that plan with a look that only a stereotypical prom queens could deliver, "Great plan, but having Spike waltz into Wolfram and Hart again isn't going to fly. We did this plan already, remember, and it was a long shot the first time around."

Angel growled, "Got any other options? Anyone?" He needed to find her. I should never have left her in Sunnydale. Spike was right, I could have prevented all of this. Brown eyes stared down the gathering of do gooders in his lobby.

There were no better plans unless the gang wanted to start making bets on who would get her first, Watchers or Demons. Wesley, always practical, pulled himself mentally from the situation, falling back into his old watcher training. Yet dread burnt his tongue like chili powder. Very softly he asked the question no one was considering, "What are we going to do when we find Buffy?"

Giles stared down the other watcher much like a wolf does before it pounces, "What do you mean?" There was a silent threat laced in that collected tone. He knew what the younger watcher was getting at but he would not let him go through with it.

Wesley stood a little straighter. He was not that young timid watcher that stumbled into Sunnydale High's Library over a year ago. "We need to kill Buffy."

The Scoobies gasped while the members of Angel's team watched Wesley carefully. Giles, very coldly and very calmly, stated, "We're not killing Buffy under any circumstances."

Wesley kept his resolve, "We don't have a choice. Buffy's entire existence is putting the Slayer line in jeopardy."

Xander jumped into the conversation, "Prove it."

There was never any concrete proof in these matters. It was just a matter of intellectual hypothesis that was based on folklore and half remembered conversations. However, Wesley took it as gospel, "The longer she's alive the more strain it puts on the essence of the slayer. Soon it will drain completely and the spiritual matter that makes up the slayer will be gone forever."

Willow glared at the younger watcher, "Funny, still not hearing facts to back up your claim."

Xander added, "And what about that creepy ritual thingy, huh?

Sounds to me like you need a slayer for that."

Giles hissed, "We're not letting you kill Buffy." He looked to Angel for support but he found something wavering in the Champion for the PTB's expression.

Angel brooded his thoughts following Wesley's line of reasoning, "No one is killing Buffy right now."

Anya, who had for once been listening to the conversation, quietly ventured, "This is all assuming that Buffy can still be killed." Everyone looked at her strangely so she explained, "Let's see, Buffy has been given, for a lack of a better word, two shitty options. One- she performs some blood ritual." Thoughtfully, she started to ramble, "You know they really should change the term blood ritual to demon porn. I mean, it's pretty much the same thing. Some poor girl, normally pretty and a virgin, has to be covered in fluids and eat something gross before being chained to a phallic object and be raped by some male." She glared at the men in the room, "You know what, if men were the ones forced to be chained up and raped there would be way less summonings and cults in the world "

Xander pleaded with Anya, "Honey, please, a point?"

Anya nodded, "Well option two sounds way more appealing. Hank gave her juice from the Fruit of life. If she drinks it she'll be immortal. Why choose the first option? For all we know Buffy snuck out the back with Spike in tow. And now they're relieving their mutual sexual tension."

Xander once again looked confused, "I think I say for the group, huh? How does Spike fit in to all of this?"

Willow paled, finding Anya's remark too realistic to ignore. The witch looked at the group, "Well, he did just mysteriously leave an hour after she did. There's been something going on between them. And Spike has more to gain out of her being immortal than anyone else. It would make sense for him to try to persuade her to take the easy way out."

Darkly, Angel stormed from the lobby. "I'm going to find Spike. The rest of you do whatever you want." The group went on to do their assigned tasks for lack of a better option, leaving the question of Buffy's mortality up in the air.

A few hours later Giles, resigned to the fact that he would not be able to get anything else done on his quest to bring back the slayers without Buffy's answer, closed the book with light but audible thud. Slowly and with a certain amount of loathing, his exhausted eyes dragged up to the round clock face. Half past ten and she's been gone all night. Wesley had abandoned the research on Tatamy hours ago, never really believing it would lend results. Instead he elected to rest in one of the many rooms the hotel had to offer while Giles stayed up looking for a way to summon dragons. For a moment he was absolutely alone with his doubts and worries. The gnawing concerns forced him to remain in the waking world even though his eyelids dropped with the need for sleep. Pure exhaustion forced his eyes closed as he took off his wired lenses. Only he did not get any rest as a whoosh paired with the smell of smoke filled the lobby. Angel had rushed past Giles with a wildness about him that made the watcher's stomach sink. Robotically he followed after the vampire to his office behind the former concierge desk, sidestepping the still smoldering blanket that now lay at the bottom of the stairs that led to the garden. The worst case scenarios bumbled and tripped forward in the watcher's head, vying for top billing. Oh god she's dead. The Watcher's Council got her. No... not the Watcher's Council. Hank the bloody pillock. 'Oh I love my daughter, watch as I stab this knife right into her bloody back.' Bollocks, I should've gone with her. He watched Angel search for weapons through a chestnut cabinet. The vampire would pick one up and give it a few tentative swings before discarding it completely in favor for another one. Not good. Why does he need weapons? Is she? God no. She wouldn't. Would she? "What happened? Did you find her?"

Angel scowled, "She's alive." He picked up a broad sword, slashing it in the air, imagining it was Spike's head he was slicing off.

Giles narrowed his eyes. All of a sudden he aged twenty years in one breath. Oh dear lord, no. Coldly he asked, fearing he already knew the answer, "And her soul?"

Angel clanged the sword on the oak desk. Annoyed, he snarled, "Still there."

"If all is well then why are you looking for weapons?" Giles asked. A vague sense of a lie had tinted the air, making it taste like spoiled milk.

Angel closed his eyes as if that would shut out his current problem. He gripped the desk hard enough to crack the wood. "The weapons are for Spike." The half-truth hurt his tongue to utter but Wesley was right. Buffy needed to die.

Giles looked at the vampire. Suspicion, cold and calculating, darkened his features. "Why?"

Angel mentally answered, He took my Slayer. It had taken him all night but he had tracked down Spike in an old warehouse. From the shadows he watched Spike and Buffy curl into each other's arms and fall asleep. The scent of their coupling wafted around him like perfume, making him ill. Then it had gotten worse when she whispered, 'Love you, Spike,' body still very much asleep. The wisp of a declaration had made one blue eye crack open to study the sleeping slayer. Tenderly, he brushed a stray hair from her face and kissed the top of her head before murmuring, 'I love you, too.'

Spike and he had switch places. Angel had become the interloper in Buffy's life while Spike had become the lover. It was all too much for the soulful vampire. He wanted to rage, to throw Spike into the sunlight and watch him sizzle as he held Buffy back from going to his aid. He could already hear the muffled 'bloody hell's' as the vampire fought to get back inside while Buffy thrashed in his arms, warm and naked, crying out for Spike. He had to get out before his temper got the better of him and he did something he would regret.

Angel had staggered out of the warehouse, nearly catching himself on fire from the first few rays of the sun. He had stumbled to the sewers in a haze. It wasn't long before Wesley had caught up with him on his way back to the hotel. He had slipped away from the hotel while Giles' was buried in book. He needed to talk to Angel privately, "Did you find her?" Wesley had asked, honestly concerned.

He hissed, "Yes, She's with Spike."

Wesley, cautious of Angel's temper, asked, "And is she..." He trailed off, not needing to finish the sentence.

Angel's eyes shifted between brown and yellow as the words 'Love you, Spike,' flashed in his head like disco lights. "Yeah, she's still human." He shouted to the former watcher. He paced into the muck and mire. "Just say it, Wesley. Tell me to kill her. Tell me to kill the first woman I ever loved." Who doesn't love me back, he added to himself.

Wesley explained, his tone and expression measured, "It has to be done, Angel. Buffy will understand that."

He shook his head, "How am I going to kill her?" A traitorous voice that sounded too much like Angelus for Angel's liking reminded him of the sword through his gut that had send him to hell, curtesy of Buffy Summers. "What about this ritual thing?"

"There's no way to complete the ritual without a dragon's heart," Wesley explained. Angel stormed away. He had to face Giles with the distasteful task of killing the Slayer.

Giles knew something was going on. The inherent chill in the watcher's voice gave it away, "Angel, what happened?"

Angel couldn't lie to him. He looked down at the bluish grey carpet, mentally choosing the long broad sword with the ivory handle. Sharp enough for a quick painless beheading and long enough to keep some distance between me and Spike when things get messy. Finally, he met the watcher's eyes, "I have to kill Buffy."

"Why?" The one word question was like a punch in the gut for both men.

A little more harshly than he intended, Angel groaned, "You know why." He picked up the sword, grabbing it by its sheath.

Scathingly, Giles spat, "No, explain it to me. Because from where I am standing it sounds like you want to kill the last slayer without looking at all the possibilities."

Angel huffed, "I have looked at all the possibilities. Tatamy's ritual is impossible to preform without a dragon's heart. And when is the last time you saw dragons flying around?"

The reality of it sunk in. Giles was speechless for a moment. Yes, they had a champion and they had a slayer but they did not have a dragon's heart. Without that one key ingredient the cause was lost. "There has to be a way." His voice sounded dead from both exhaustion and acceptance.

Angel sighed, feeling every day of his 247 years. "No, there really isn't."

"That can't be right." Giles shook his head.

"If there was a way around this don't you think I would take it." Angel looked at Giles honestly. "I'm sorry."

Giles picked up a crossbow, "I am coming with you." Soon the pair was out the door.

The unlikely duo walked through the sewers to a hatch that led into a dockside warehouse. An hour had passed and the two lovers were still on the mattress, asleep. Giles looked at the scene and then back at Angel, suddenly wondering what his true motivations were.

The second human heartbeat had woken Spike up. He cradled Buffy closer to him and nuzzled into her, whispering in her ear with a smirk, "Luv, we got company."

She buried her face into Spike's chest, still longing to cling to the few hours of sleep, unaware of who was actually watching them. "Hmm, let me guess. That search party finally caught up to us?" Green drowsy eyes opened to see Angel staring at her with that lost puppy look while brandishing a sword. Guilt nagged and needled at her, making her pull away from Spike just a little as deja vu crept up her spine. She sat up, clutching the grey scratchy blanket around her. Finally she noticed Giles at Angel's side. His grey eyes held an unnatural gloom to them that screamed both disappointment and regret, "Okay, I know I should've called but what's with the tragedy masks? Did something happen to Dawn? Is everyone okay?"

Giles spoke very solemnly, "Put on your clothes. We need to go." Carefully, his gaze shifted between Spike and Angel, not sure who was the bigger threat.

Buffy nodded, "Yeah, just give me a sec, kay?"

The interlopers turned away, keeping the couple in earshot as they scrambled to get dressed. Spike subtly shifted the vile back into Buffy's hands, something telling him they were going to need it. She awkwardly announced she was ready. Both Spike and Buffy made to leave. Angel glared, "Spike stays here."

The vampire in question glared back, "Too bad that's not going to happen."

Buffy grabbed Spike's hand, lacing her fingers with his. "Spike can come with us."

Angel's heart broke a little more at that declaration. "No he can't, Buffy. This is something we need to discuss in private."

Concern dripped into her eyes, "What's with the weapons? Did this CDSA thing attack?"

Giles answered, "No. Buffy it's about the ritual. And I don't feel comfortable sharing it in front of Spike." He tightened his grip around the crossbow.

Spike stepped between him and Buffy, "And I told you, watcher, I'm sticking by her side."

Buffy grabbed his arm, stepping forward, the vision of immortal life coming into focus. It had skipped and shifted, playing in her head both backwards and forwards but this had been in it. She was certain this moment was in it. "It's okay, Spike, you can come with us." She looked at the two other men, daring them to disagree.

Angel scowled, "Fine, let's do this here then. Buffy, there's no way to do the ritual. We only have one option left."

Spike snapped, "And you figured that out in the whole twelve hours we've been away?"

Giles was starting to raise his crossbow toward Spike, Buffy stood in front of him. "Giles, no, please." Angel flashed into his game face, ready for a fight. Spike pushed her out of the way gently. She knew the next step in the vision. In her panic she would drink the vile; Giles would shoot Spike in the back, dusting him. Once the file was empty she would kill Giles, then Angel, followed by Wesley and anyone else who had the misfortune of being at the Hyperion. Then it was 800 years of killing off the Watcher's council before destroying the world.

She looked at Spike, returning to the present moment. "Everyone stop. Please." She held out the vile. "Here's what happens next. You kill Spike. I take this. And the world ends because there are no more slayers." Everyone froze at those words. "Alice showed me what's going to happen next. Every possibility. I died in each of them. " She dropped the vile, crushing it under her foot. "Just before you kill me, hear me out."

Chapter End Notes:

Had a little extra time so I am posting the next chapter up now. Please in enjoy. Read and Review.

As always big thanks to Whisperrr


	19. Death Becomes Her

Death Becomes Her

Chapter Nineteen

A callous finger traced the bare skin of her cheek. It wasn't warm and something about that seemed wrong. Hank swallowed a lump that had grown in his throat. Very few times in his life did he ever truly feel 's see, there was that nasty business with Pilate. No, not then either. Damn it! Yet as jade eyes cold but not yet touched by decay stared after him screaming their unsung accusations, he felt it in spades. Hot wet rivers poured down his face. He snarled, "Fuckin watchers," before the high and mighty Hank fell to his knees burying his face in the pale white sheet that covered her still form. In the brief moments of grief he could've sworn he felt the rise and fall of her chest but it was impossible, her heart did not sound. Tear, silent as her grave, fell from the mossy well of his eyes, dampening her to the bone.

Certain he would go mad if he stayed on his knees sobbing like a child, the lawyer got up pouring his grief into something more useful like white hot hell fires that would burn both the Watchers Council and the CDSA to the ground. Hank wiped his eyes before he straightened his tie. A malevolent curl of his lips pulled his expression into a condescending sneer before he greeted the shadows that had been carefully watching him for the last ten minutes. "Aren't we both a little too old for the lurking bit. Come out and face me like a man."

With that Angel materialized in front of Hank as if he had been part shadow himself.

"I'm sorry for your loss." The neutrality of the vampire's condolences put the lawyer's teeth on edge. A deeper scowl showed through the sneer. "I'm not in the mood to play, watcher. So you better come out before I drag you out by your tongue." Giles stumbled forward, his grey eyes fixed to the dead girl in the room. Hank spat acid, "You both killed my daughter."

A sharp pain kicked Angel in the gut at the lawyer's claim. Unconsciously the brown depths of his eyes roamed over to his former lover. He could still hear Buffy's plea, 'Please, hear me out.' She had begged but there was nothing to hear. The world needs a slayer. Angel repeated Giles' words to himself like they were some magical spell that would make everything alright. "It had to be done." Angel answered, forcing himself to look away from the body as if she would suddenly sit up and start spouting off puns before ramming the faithful crossbow bolt into his chest.

Hank scoffed, "That help you sleep at night?" In a mockery of Angel's monotone voice with his forlorn expression, Hank repeated his last words. "It had to be done. For rainbows and Christmas and for all that's good and right in the world." He shook his head, "God, what a load of crap. It didn't have to be done. You wanted to do it. It felt good." Cruel laughter that flayed Angel alive bounced from Hank's lips, "So much for your undying love for her, huh? But that was the problem, wasn't it? You never loved her. Not really. Don't get me wrong, you wanted to fuck her alright and you wanted her to love you. But you never loved her."

Angel snarled, taking a threatening step forward. "How dare you say that? I-"

Hank stopped Angel in his tracks with a look that could burn men alive, "If you had loved her, really loved her, you wouldn't have left. You would have found a way to anchor your soul." Conspiratorial smile pulled at the corners of his lips. This was what Hank was good at - twisting the truth and bending it to his purposes, "But that's the thing… your dirty little secret. How you cope with all your guilt without going stark raving mad is that one day you won't have it anymore. Either through redemption or by losing your soul all together. Let's face it, you're a realist. All the blood you spilled, all your cruelties, every sinister act performed not just by you but by the creatures you made. There's no way you get redeemed. Hell, I bet you could turn the ocean red with all the blood you and your children spilled over the last 247 years. I mean, just with Drusilla alone her body count is enough to damn both you and her for all time. That means the only real chance for peace is if that soul flies away. And you'll never love anyone enough to give up your one shot at peace."

The once harmless human man in front of Angel had shifted. His skin had cracked to reveal black brimstone under the fleshy coding but that had not startled Angel. No, it was his eyes that flashed with hellfire. Hellfire that Angel had been intimately associated with a lifetime ago.

The vampire backed away with a coldness gripping his spine, taking all the unused breath from his lungs until he gasped for unneeded air. "T-t-that's not true." A little desperately Angel tried to dive back into the shadows.

Hank gave a sharp inhuman smile with teeth stained yellow from coffee and cigars. "Really now. Which part?" He cocked his head to the side that was just a little too much like Buffy for Angel's liking.

Bravely, the vampire rolled his shoulders back and stared into the brimstone eyes that haunted his dreams as much as the faces of his victims. "I-I want my soul… I don't want to be that thing anymore."

Those brimstone eyes sparkled with wicked joy that made Angel's stomach lurch forward. "Alright then." With a little spring in his step Hank punched a fist through Angel's chest. The Partners will be pissed but what's life without pissing people off? Angel's eyes glowed light blue for a second before he fell slack against Hank. The air around them had changed, it was almost electric and reeked of magic. Conversationally Hank explained to Angel, "Well, you'll never have to worry about losing it again. You'll feel every second of the suffering you caused, until the sun rises in the west and sets in the east. Until the moon is devoured by flames and the mountain sways in the wind like blades of grass. Only then will you know that your torment is at its end." He pulled a blood covered fist from Angel's chest. The wound healed up instantly, yet the vampire clattered to the cement floor like a bag of rocks.

Giles, too afraid to check on Angel, merely spoke in a horrified whisper, "What are you?"

Human gaze back in place, Hank smiled at Giles a little coldly, "What can I say, Ripper. I'm a man of wealth and taste." The lawyer's eyes were drawn back to his daughter. Death hadn't marred her yet and perhaps it never will, Hank mused to himself. He whispered, "Why did you do it? And don't say because the world needs a slayer. We both know that's a load of crap."

Giles studied the vampire shaking and sobbing in front of him. A measured sort of calm overtook him. "If she had taken that vile, not only everything that gives my life meaning would be lost but the entire universe along with it. Our only hope was to activate a lost potential that might have been spared in the slaughter."

Hank gave a bitter shake of his head, "Then you are a fool, watcher. Faith was the last potential and I killed her."

Giles shook his head refusing to believe the words tumbling from Hank's mouth, "No, Faith was a slayer. Like Buffy." Unable to stop himself his eyes wandered over to the girl in question that lied peacefully on the table as if she would sit up and come to his aid if need be. A breath caught in his throat as a sob tried to crawl from it.

A whisper of an explanation passed from Hank. "As you know the slayer line was broken because Buffy lived after the Master's failed attempt to open the Hellmouth. So every slayer after her only had half the power. Kendra had the roots and the strength but lacked the speed and adaptability. On the other hand, Faith had the strength, the speed, and adaptability but none of the connection to her roots. If Buffy had died before either of them than the line would have been fixed. But I am a selfish bastard, I wanted my daughter to keep living. When I heard about the good Mother sparing Faith I murdered her to stop this from happening." He gestured to the corpse in front of him.

"Why tell me this?" Giles longed to run away as Hank took three large steps toward him.

Hank hissed, "Because I want you to know for the rest of your miserably short life that YOU murdered MY daughter for nothing and YOU, and let me be very clear on this point, NOT HER destroyed the Slayer line."

Giles swallowed back his panic. "How miserably short will my life be?"

Hank gave a rueful smile, "I say about twenty maybe thirty years give or take."

A jagged breath escaped Giles' lungs, "So you're not going to kill me?"

Hank shrugged, "No, as much as I don't understand it, she cared for you. She did and it would have hurt her to see you dead." Giles looked toward Angel in a silent question that screamed 'what about him'. Hank laughed, "Oh, Angel. I just love making his unlife a living hell. I have a whole law firm dedicated to the activity." He studied the watcher carefully. Something about him seemed odd. The whole situation was odd. She was never supposed... Spike...even without payment, he was supposed to protect her. He loved her after all. Hank laughed a cold and heartless thing that bounced and danced off the metal filing cabinets and concrete walls. "Speaking of immortal pains in the ass. Tell me how are you still breathing? I figured Spike would've done away with you by now."

Giles frowned at the body before answering. "A small miracle of grief I'm afraid. He was too concerned with trying to save her to worry about me escaping." He rubbed his glasses, not certain if he could ever get rid of the image of his slayer dead on a metal slab. "Once the dust settles a bit I am certain he'll remedy that error." The body stared listlessly at the ceiling. Her eyes are not as glassy as before, Giles mused. Maybe it's a trick of the light. A little wistfully Giles inquired, "When will you and Joyce be having the burial?"

Hank's eyes were drawn back to the cold body on the slab. For a second he could swear he saw a bit of rose return to her cheeks. "You didn't have to kill her."

"Yes, I did. Even if she had gone through with the ritual, it was impossible to perform it. There are no more dragons in the world." Giles' voice came down like sleet.

"You weren't looking in the right place." He finally pulled himself away from the situation.

This was what Giles was waiting for. Careful not to seem too eager he asked, "What do you mean?"

The lawyer narrowed his eyes at the watcher before he shoved the shorter man into a wall and wrapped his hand around his throat. The watcher was trying to be clever and he couldn't have that. "Just because I spared your miserable little life even after you helped murder my daughter doesn't mean you can play me for a fool." He tighten his grip, "What aren't you telling me, watcher?"

The smell of rotten eggs made Giles want to wretch. He attempted to probe forward despite the blistering of his skin, "I'm just saying, you can't be bloody well telling me that you know where to find a dragon."

He eyed Buffy one more time. His stomach leapt into his throat. Resigned, Hank nodded, certain something was going on, "You have to look in-between the lines for the dragons." Hank dropped Giles down, backing away slowly. "I think I am done playing your little game, Ripper. Good luck finding your dragons."

Once the morgue was still Giles leapt to Angel's side, turning his back from the body.

Buffy rose from the table, "Wow, that was intense."

Giles tripped over Angel's hulking form, nearly breaking something in the process as he tumbled forward. With an annoyed huff he righted himself and glared at his living breathing charge, "A little warning before you do that."

Buffy suppressed a chuckle at Giles' expression, "Sorry. Is Angel okay?"

Giles frowned, watching the door Hank left from with a heavy a heart, "Yes, other than your father anchoring his soul he should be fine. How are you? You're the one who's got the death certificate."

Buffy pouted, "Okay, a little woozy. Willow's got to ease up on that eye of newt. I am still tasting reptile. Yuck."

Giles rolled his eyes, "Yes, duly noted for the next time you fake your death."

Buffy scowled watching the door for Hank, "You think he bought it?"

Giles frowned, "I am not certain. He was a little too forthcoming with information."

A groan from the floor announced Angel's return to the waking world. Screams from every victim he had tortured made his head buzz and ache with effort of thought. "Did I get hit by a truck?" Angel staggered to his feet before giving a forced smile to Buffy. "Nice to see you breathing again."

Buffy hugged the sheet a little tighter around herself. "Yeah, can't manage to stay dead apparently. So, I am assuming one of the two of you brought me clothes, right? Cause I'm not sitting here all night waiting for my autopsy. Speaking of which, when the mortician comes, how are we going to get around the fact my body isn't here? That's going to raise a few alarm bells."

Angel shrugged, "Bodies vanish mysteriously from the morgue all the time."

Giles pulled out a large paper bag. He dug out a pair of ratty blue jeans and one of his grey tops handing it them over to Buffy instantly. Then he pulled out a plastic sack filled with bone dust and a lock of the slayer's hair. All while he explained, "Yes, under normal circumstances one body missing from Sunnydale Morgue wouldn't raise eyebrows but the last slayer's body will be watched carefully for the next three days. So Angel and I will have to go through the Jane Doe's to find a suitable look alike. Then I will cast a glamour over the body to make sure it resembles you in every way. After that Willow has to hack into the coronary reports and change anything that might give away that our Jane Doe isn't you."

Buffy scrunched her nose in distaste of the unfashionable outfit that Giles had seen fit to bring her. "That sounds needlessly complicated. If we could just glamour some dead body to look like me, why did I have to do the whole Juliet thing again?" She grumbled pulling on the grey shirt over her bear breast while Giles and Angel looked through the filing cabinets of the dead.

Angel took up the explanation turning green at the smell of decay. "Because the demon community needed to see you die in a fight."

"O-ah I found one. Angel, help me move her to Buffy's slab." Giles cheered as Buffy hopped off the table shimming up her jeans.

The vampire simply slung the dead girl over his shoulder when a clang of a gurney falling over paired with a loud woosh and a slurred 'bloody hell' sounded from the doorway. "Whosh puts a soddin tablesh in the bleedin walkway anyhow? " Spike kicked the gurney across the room, denting one of the metal drawers. He got to his feet, unaware of the slayer's presence just yet. Instead he saw Angel holding the rotting corpse of a petite blonde. Assuming the dead girl was Buffy, Spike lunged into action. He leapt across the room closing the distance between Angel and himself. "Wasn'tsh good enough forshyoush to kill the girlsh. No youshgotta make off withsh her body too. What more could yoush bloody pillocks dosh to her." Angel puts put the body down while dodging a sloppy punch.

"Spike, please get a hold of a yourself." Giles attempted to sooth the vampire.

However Spike knocked Angel on the ground with a kick before whirling on Giles. "Yoush shot hersh in the bloody back. Whatsh couldn't look her in the eyesh when yoush murdered her?" Fangs out, Spike shoved Giles into the long metal walls steel doors. "I shouldsh rip you bloody head off and use it as a football."

Angel pulled Spike off the watcher. "Look, boy, go home and sober up and we can deal with this then."

Buffy glared at Giles and Angel. "Neither one you ever told Spike I was alive?"

The soft flute of Buffy's voice stopped all motion. Spike spun to see her standing in a very un-Buffy-ish outfit, wearing her patented scowl that screamed both annoyance and disappointment. Grateful for his lack of breath Spike stepped forward. He whispered in awe, "You're alive." He touched her cheek too feel the warmth and relished in the ratta-tap-tap of her heart beat.

Chapter End Notes:

Sorry I haven't updating in while. My computer was in the shop for fews days and then I went out of town so I haven't had time to write. Please read and review. Big thank readers and my Beta Whisperrr.


	20. The In-Between

The In-Between

Chapter Twenty

Hair sprawled on the pillow next to Spike tickled his nose filling it with the scent of strawberries and something else indescribable. It was as if sunlight had a smell. Then like a kick in the gut he realized what it was. Buffy. Blue eyes shot open to see the rise and fall of her chest. In awe he listened to the music of her heartbeat that sung beneath her breast 'ratta-tap-tap, ratta-tap-tap, ratta-tap-tap'. Unable to believe it was her, he brushed his fingers down her soft cheek. Warm... alive... in my bed. Soon the caress of his fingers was replaced with gentle, wanting lips that followed the path his hand made that somehow went all the way to her subtle breast without waking her. Until he got lower still; her breath became huskier, more labored before her heart threatened to beat out of her chest as his lips roamed southward. "Spike," She moaned.

Green eyes burst open into awareness as a talented tongue found the slayer's most tender spots. He sucked and nipped at the right times eliciting a symphony of delighted groans and moans. Buffy gripped the curls of Spike's bleached hair, soft as a lamb's wool, while she arched into his touches allowing his mouth to get better access to her slick, wet quim. A breathy, husky sort of moan escaped long and ragged from somewhere low in her chest. "God, Spike." She melted in his mouth like honey, sticky and sweet.

With a twinkle in his wicked, blue eyes he looked up from between her legs with a lazy smile. He crawled the length of her and kissed her slow and drawn out in that way that made her toes curl. He pressed his forehead to hers, letting his weight rest on top of her. He whispered almost reverently, "This is real."

She kissed him, full and hard, flipping him on his back without breaking a sweat. All was right with the world. Her strength was back and he was plunging into her womanly depths that tightened around his achingly hard cock with every thrust. Through all the panting and groaning he was able to make out, "Of... course... this is real." Buffy smiled down at him, impaling herself on him as he dug his black chipped nails into her hips.

His eyes rolled upward as her sweet little quim tightened around him. One more inch closer and control was going to be a faraway dream. Gasping, Spike begged, "Please, luv… I need... feel…. to…. taste."

Buffy offered up her neck with a roll of her shoulders as his cock hit that right spot deep inside. "Please… d-o... do it." Instantly Spike had her on her back, making that extra inch that made her explode just before long white fangs sunk into her sun kissed skin. She was flames and sunshine and cotton candy all in one. Blood poured down his throat, making him high on the taste of her. Greedily he drank until her heart started to sputter. Rat-ta-t—a—p-t-a-p, R-a-t-ta-t—-a—-p-t-a-p, R-a-t-t-a and then the music stopped all together. She was dead on top of him, her blood on his lips and a crossbow bolt embedded in her breast. She fell slack over him.

"Oh god… no," he shot up to find he was absolutely alone in the Crawford Street mansion. "Another sodding dream…" he whispered, vaguely registering that he had been asleep moments ago. He scanned the shadows to find the room empty. Yet he had no memory of how he came to be here. Slowly he pulled himself to his feet, finding he was still in last night's clothes. A hushed argument could be heard coming from the main hall. He instinctively walked toward it, picking up on the all too familiar voices of his grandsire and the watcher. A growl, low and menacing, rumbled like thunder from his chest. Last night came into focus; he had driven to Sunnydale with every intention of killing both Giles and Angel for their part in his slayer's death. Yet as he made to step into the main hall another voice kicked him in the stomach, making him hide in the shadows in fear. Fear that it would vanish and become just another trick in his head.

She's alive.

Outrage stained Buffy's voice that bounced off the stone walls and marble floors. "You never change," She spat, "Once again you just make a decision for everyone without caring what they might want. You should've told Spike as soon as it happened."

Spike gripped the stone column, grateful he did not breathe. She's alive.

Angel groaned, getting tired of this conversation. "What do you want me to say, Buffy? I'm sorry? Because I'm not. Spike's a liability, Why can't you see that?"

Buffy snarled, "Oh I see plenty. And the only liability here is you."

Angel laughed a little bitterly, "Sorry to disappoint but Daddy dearest made sure I wasn't a liability anymore."

She glared daggers at him, "Who the hell said I was talking about Angelus. For all I know you're just counting down the days before you can kill me again."

Angel gave his best kicked puppy look, "I don't want you dead."

She tried not to melt but a small warm front was kicking out the chill for her ex. She reminded him and herself, "Couple of days ago you certainly seemed willing to do the job."

Guilt overtook Angel, "I didn't want to kill you. Spike yeah, sure. Still do in fact. But not you... Never you." He made to pull her closer but she backed way, "Okay, maybe not telling him was more about me getting even with him taking you away."

Buffy gave him a sad little smile, "I don't belong to anyone. Least of all you. You gave that up when you left."

Giles huffed, "Oh bloody hell. Could you not rehash the whole Romeo and Juliet thing every time you two are in the same room? We've got more important things to deal with."

Bravado in place, Spike stepped out of the shadows, "Hate to agree with Rupes but we're burning moonlight." He narrowed his eyes at Buffy unable to keep the awe out of them, "And I damn well want answers before sunrise. So if you and the Great Poof could save the melodramatics until after one of the two of you explain what the hell is going on, that would be brilliant."

Buffy gave him a bashful smile, "Good morning. Or I guess night."

He closed the distance between them and lifted his hand to her face as if to touch her but he never made contact, still afraid she would vanish from the room. From him. "You were dead… I heard your heart stop. How?" He couldn't stop the softness in his voice.

Giles rolled his eyes, "Oh dear lord. We're wasting time. Buffy faked her death to get the CDSA and the Watcher's Council off her back so we could do research without worrying about the next attack. It also allowed for us to collect information from Hank which I would love to share with everyone if-"

"I thought I failed you." Spike balled his hands into fist to prevent from touching her. He was practically aching to touch her and reassure himself she was really here. Alive. "I held you as you died. I felt you go cold. I pulled the arrow from your sodding back. How?!"

Giles muttered, "Or we could keep with the pointless angst that serves to fuel this love triangle. What next? Is Riley going to just magically appear and make this scene all the more convoluted?"

Buffy went on without hearing Giles' groans of disappointment. "A little chanting, a bit of potion and all sorts of stuff could happen." Sympathetically, she looked into Spike's blue eyes, "For what it's worth I'm sorry for hurting you like that."

Coldly, Spike asked, "Was any of it real?" A creek of the door jarred the couple from their exchange much to both Angel's and Giles' relief.

Xander led the charge into Angel's mansion with Willow at his rear. The two longtime Scoobies were armed with fat books, coffee, and donut holes. Xander put the coffee and food down popping one donut hole in his mouth. With a spray of crumbs he grumbled, "Why are we up at this ungodly hour?" He smiled warmly at Buffy handing her a coffee, "Non-fat latte for the recently dead girl?"

She took the cup sheepishly, "Thanks, Xan."

The boy glowered at Spike, "What's bleach boy doing here? I thought he was a liability."

Spike glared at the watcher, "The whelp gets to know before me? Red, I get. She has that witchy stuff in her back pocket. But the whelp? Really?"

Buffy apologized again, "Really, really sorry. Someone was supposed to tell you after it was done." She glared at both Angel and Giles.

Willow butted in, "If it makes you feel better Xander didn't know until last night. And Tara, Anya, Joyce, and Dawn still don't know."

Exasperated, Giles huffed, "I found dragons if anyone cares to know." The room fell silent, "Good, I have your attention now. As you all know by now Buffy faked her death. As a consequence of that decision Angel and myself had to go to the morgue where we bumped into a grieving Hank. And he said a few interesting things that gave me pause. One of which involved looking In-Between the lines. At first I thought he was just being cryptic but actually he meant the In-Between . A realm where lost things go. Dragons being lost from this realm could in theory be in the In-Between ."

Angel asked the first question, "That's great, how do we get in?"

Giles cleaned his glasses, "That's the thing we can't do. The realm is for lost things; traveling there is complicated and getting back is next to impossible."

Xander yawned, trying to cut to the chase so he could get to work. "Which means we're screwed and there will be no more slayers?"

Giles frowned, "Not exactly. There's a spell we could use. It will have to be modified to allow Buffy to bring one thing back with her but in theory it could be done. We just need to get to Death Valley by sunrise."

Spike spoke up, "I don't like this. There's too much magic involved and too many things could go terribly wrong."

Buffy stepped in, "Is there any other way?"

Giles shook his head, "No."

Buffy made her expression steal, "Let's do it then."

The next day the pilgrimage to Death Valley was long, complete with a five hour drive and a three hour hike. Much as the young sparkless slayer wanted to whine about the throbbing of her feet to her companions, Giles and Willow, she refrained from doing so. Eventually the group got into a small valley off the beaten path which was filled with towering rock formations and openings to a web of underground caverns. Giles placed down his pack and instructed the group of youths. Willow was asked to make a large circle out of sage and rosemary for the slayer to stand inside, while Giles had the task of placing four blessed candles along the circle.

The watcher explained, "Buffy, in order for you to access the In-Between you must fulfill three conditions. One involves time; the In-Between is only open between dusk or dawn. Two, you must be in a place between water and mountains. Finally, your consciousness must be altered." he paused letting his words sink in, "The real trick will be keeping the door open so you can get out again. This will be Willow's task."

Giles handed the floor over to the young witch who stood a little taller with the introduction. She happily chirped out her idea, "The In-Between has all the lost things in the world. I mean everything from the Holy Grail to that missing hair brush you lost last year. So the trick is finding the thing you're looking for and getting back to the door that takes you to this realm. Now, I've mixed a locator spell and that spell we used to get into your head while you were all Coma Girl. Hopefully this will allow us to keep a door open while guiding you to the dragon hearts."

Buffy listened carefully, tapping her foot with trepidation. She had always considered magic much like driving, something she should avoid if possible and done by anyone else besides her. However, she found this spell unavoidable. "What if it doesn't work?"

Willow and Giles looked at each other for a second. Willow handed Buffy an almost cartoonishly looking red mushroom cap. "Let's just hope it works. Be sure to eat all of it."

Buffy studied the mushroom cap skeptically, "Great, if I don't come back from Wonderland, tell the gang I love them." The slayer took a small bite. Finding it surprisingly good she ate every bite bit as blue bitter goo covered her hands. In just a moment she felt her body buzzing as light filled her head. The pair of chanting witch and watcher seemed to make Buffy tickle.

To The Goddess of light

Guide the warrior through the dark

Let her find what can't be seen

Let her come back from where none have left

With these words we ask you please

Guide the last slayer

The voices of the group melted into songbirds flying into the newly painted sky. In glorious haze Buffy saw the birds dance and sing happily. They sang until they turned into the vicious monsters that consumed the slayer's life. Soon all the screams she ever uttered echoed against the valley walls as the monsters in the sky killed one another. Blood from each beast fell in the circle like a summer storm. The drops of blood attached themselves to the slayer like it was her own skin. Then a strange thought came to her - what if it wasn't her skin but her blood seeping from her pores. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see the faces of the monsters she had killed and the people she failed to protect. Oh god, there's so much blood! How do they not see it? Oh god! I need a towel. Must keep it in or I will die. Oh god! Wait, there's something I need to do. What is it? I can't stand the screaming.

Unwittingly, Buffy was screaming and clawing at herself, wanting to wipe away all the death she had created in her short life. She seemed to circle back to the quest at hand. I remember dragon hearts. I need to find them. Dragon hearts and the In-Between.

Soon the world fell into silence, unmovable and peaceful silence.

A woman came from nowhere. She seemed to blend into the shadows with her onyx skin and black leather jacket that seemed so familiar to Buffy but she couldn't place it.

The woman watched the slayer forlornly, "We must go."

Buffy studied the woman in front of her much like a tricky math problem, "I know you, don't I? You're a slayer?" She knew the woman's every step and jester like it had been her own.

The woman answered, "Yes. My name was Nikki, I got called thirty years before you. Come on, I am running late." Nikki started walking through a door and Buffy followed. The current slayer didn't known what to expect when she walked through the door but it wasn't a small apartment in New York and a man that looked shockingly like Nikki who stood mid punch into a punching bag. Wherever they were, time had frozen for them. The dark-skinned slayer walked over to him and touched his cheek.

Buffy's brow wrinkled with unspoken questions that buzzed silently through her head. The moment somehow seemed too important to muddle with unneeded words. Yet time nagged Buffy to move forward. She prompted gently, "I thought you were taking me to dragons."

Nikki ignored the girl, only focusing on the man in front of her. "We'll get there, just hold on." She crept closer as the man struck the bag in front of him. He was unaware of the older slayer's presences, "Hey, baby. I am here like I promised. I told you I will be back just before sunrise every night. Baby, I don't like you fighting. You need to settle down. Whatever happened to that nice girl named Shay? I liked her, you know."

Buffy uncomfortably watched the older slayer's torment, "I don't think he can hear you."

Nikki's voice was firm, "Your job is not to talk, child. It is to listen. Now shut up!" She touched the man's face, wishing she could be near him. "I got to go, baby, please settle down and get a job that doesn't involve you dying. You don't have to fight the evils of the world. That's what slayers are for. Well, it was, until some cracker bitch didn't know when to die."

The older slayer could hold the bitterness from her tone no more than she could catch the moon in the palm of her hand. Buffy had the missed the point of this moment and instead, much like a small child, she stomped her foot demanding an explanation. "Do you have a point or are you just wasting my time?"

Nikki explained, with all the patience she could muster. "He will never know I am here. I will never get to hold my grandchildren or teach my daughter in-law the lullaby I used to sing to Robin." Her voice broke a little, "I am scared he'll never know how proud I am of him. But I know he will be okay even if I am watching from the outside. Being a mother and a slayer don't go together. The fighting will drag you down slowly every night until it takes you completely."

Buffy brushed the older slayer off, "I don't need a lecture, what I need is a dragon's heart. So unless there are dragons around here, this is wasting my time." The comment had come off colder than she thought.

Nikki shook her head, disappointed at her younger sister. "It's a warning, if you take the dragon's heart you can't change your course and you will never get a chance to stop all this fighting again. So do you really want to do this?"

Buffy remembered all of the faces of those she had killed and those she had failed. She answered without a second thought, "Yes"

Nikki stonily ordered Buffy to follow her. They left the apartment behind to follow the strange streets of Sunnydale that were stuck somewhere between night and day. Smoke billowed lazily from the ground with every step the two slayers took until they got to Revello Drive. "This is as far as I go."

Buffy called after the other slayer as she walked away, "Wait, I thought you were going to take me to the dragon?"

Nikki smiled at the girl, a little saddened by her choice, "I did what I came here to do. Goodbye."

Buffy shrugged, "Well, I guess they're in there somewhere." She crept forward into her house. Images shifted and changed on the wall. She stood in the living room not sure where to go, everything around her seemed foreign and wrong somehow. Even her mother who ambled passed her didn't seem like her mother. Absolutely confused, Buffy longed for help when Faith much like Nikki appeared at Buffy's side to guide her. Faith was consumed in a hug from her older sister, "Hey B." She squeaked out.

Fondly Buffy let go. "I should have saved you," She said, letting a touch of guilt in.

Faith broke away, "Come on, B, no time for dramatics. You want a dragon, right? Follow me." The two slayers went upstairs and into a storage room discovering a sleeping dragon no bigger than a horse. Entranced, Buffy stared at the ocean scales shining in the twilight like an exotic gem in a treasure chest as they moved up and down with its sulfur breath that threatened to suffocate Buffy.

Skeptically, Buffy approached the dragon, hoping not to wake it up. "Are you sure this is a dragon?"

Faith walked beside her, "Yep, I thought it was going to look like something out of the Flintstones but what do I know? Anyway, if you take the heart you can't kill yourself for your sister. You will be the mother of slayers and you will need to take care of them for the future. Trust me, kids need their mom."

For a second Buffy saw a flickering image of a girl walk by, "What sister?"

Faith pointed at the slender brown haired girl. "She is right over there." The blond slayer watched the girl scribble something in a notebook as she faded in and out.

The china doll face of the girl seemed familiar to Buffy but she couldn't place it. "I don't know who that girl is but I don't have a sister." She pushed away the thought and instead focused her energy on finding some type of weapon to kill the dragon with.

Faith agreed with her slayer sister, "You're right, she's not really your sister, hell she's not even human, but she has your blood, the monks made sure of that. So when you get back to your world with the heart and remember that she is your sister, keep in mind she's not real and you can't die for her. It's time to go."

Buffy, longing for a good kill, announced eagerly, "Okay let's just kill this thing and get out of here."

The dark haired slayer teased, "Never seen you so eager for slay." She handed over the dagger Buffy used to kill her years ago. The dagger slid through the scales with a horrible screech that sounded like metal on a chalk board. Blood that could boil a man alive rolled from the dragon's stomach as the beast threw up white flames. Something that sounded somewhere between a death rattle and a cat wail plowed from the creature that desperately tried to shake Buffy off to no avail. She opened the dragon's stomach wider, making her way to the chest. She could smell her own flesh cooking and flaking off while she rooted around the dragon's insides for the heart. The dragon's head lolled backwards when her fingertips brushed something cool and smooth deep within the dragon. Not willing to part with its heart, the dragon made one last attempt to buck the slayer off by flapping its wings and snapping at her with its large golden teeth. Faith stopped the dragon from biting her sister by lunging for it and snapping its neck.

Buffy wrapped her hand around the circular object inside giving a good tug. It pulsed and thumped as the dragon's head awkwardly lay back at an odd angle. Once more the dragon was trying to flap its wings but found itself tired after a few tries. Death was taking over the creature and a moment of guilt pressed on Buffy's chest.

Silver blood covered her as she studied her prize. It wasn't like any heart Buffy had seen before. It glowed much like any magical orb would, only it was squishy and cold to the touch. Buffy turned to thank Faith but the younger slayer had vanished after the battle and in her place was an open door.

Buffy's body never left the desert and her friends still stood around watching her. Buffy took a step through the door and found her spirit in front of her body. Spirit Buffy placed the heart in her body's hand before feeling herself being sucked up. Her eyes blinked, seeing that no time had passed. Dawn still sunk slowly over the horizon, much like a tired child.

Willow admired the orb sitting in Buffy's hand, "Oooh pretty and shiny." She looked at Giles, her greenish blue eyes colored with confusion. "I thought the heart was going to be all organy?"

Giles cleaned his glasses before taking a closer look at the still beating heart. "Remarkable."

"Yep," Buffy answered.

The sun had finally cleaned the sky of night just as Xander arrived, sweat stained and smelling like the inside of a stable. The poor boy had been dragging a large white cooler. Willow quickly made to help her longtime friend by taking the cooler and handing him a bottle of water from her pack. "Tell me, why did you have to pick Death Valley in August. I couldn't even bring a four wheeler all the way here." Xander sat on the rock noticing the glowing orb, "That can't be the heart."

"Of course it is. I cut it out of the dragon," Buffy explained. "Is that what think it is?"

"A gift from your favorite brooding vampire." Xander confirmed. "I don't see why it always has to be blood."

Her stomached flipped as she saw gallons of blood sitting inside the cooler. "Thanks Xan." Buffy tried to swallow down her unease. Her nose scrunched up at Angel's gift much in the same way it would if a dog left something dead on her porch.

"No problem, need heavy things lugged into the desert I'm your guy." Xander teased failing to lighten the mood of the group.

Giles explained, "We should get started. Willow, unpack the chains while I start the protection spell. Buffy, the heart."

Xander was confused, "How is she supposed to eat a star?"

Buffy shrugged, "Well, this will either kill me or… what's the other option, Giles."

Giles sighed, "Does anyone ever listen to me." closing his eyes, he explained. "You'll pass out before going completely feral. After that, who knows. Hence the chains."

"Right let's see what happens." Buffy popped the heart in her mouth and swallowed.

Chapter End Notes:

As always big thank you to Whisperrr she edit this story and even gave me few lines to make flow better. She's really been good beta through whole story.

To those of you who read my story I am glad you you enjoy

as always please read and review.


	21. A Lovers' Dance

A Lovers' Dance

Chapter Twenty One

The sounds of Willy's patrons crawled over Spike's skin, souring his mood to the point where expired milk would seem sweet in comparison to him. Buffy's funeral was today and even though it wasn't real he still felt the inherent grief that came with the granite slab with her name on it. It had been a nighttime affair done for the benefit of a brooding vampire that didn't even bother with showing up. A fact that made Spike's teeth mash together and his eyes flicker gold. Soddin git, can't even bother to make an appearance for the sake of the mourners. Bloody pillock. He swallowed down the anger, putting his focus on Dawn's wet, puppy dog eyes and Joyce's cool mask of acceptance. It's a bloody farce, he sighed keeping an eye out for any fledges looking for an easy meal that could be made out of the mourners. Though Spike half expected that Hank had security teams around the graves, keeping the local riff raff from bothering any of them. Perhaps they staked the great poof on sight and that's why he's not here. He smiled at the thought, feeling through the family bond it wasn't true. He frowned again, He's probably fuckin her right now while they're putting miss doppelganger in the ground. A low growl vibrated from his throat making Willow turn and glare at him as she snuggled closer to Tara.

After giving his condolences to both Dawn and Joyce, Spike was off to Willy's to get smashed. Everyone played their parts well, Spike mused to himself, taking a long swallow from a bottle of Jack. When all else failed, a bottle or two of Jack Daniels could set it to rights again. Until now. Liquor hot and boiling sloshed in the vampire's stomach, fraying his nerves to the point he cracked when three biker vamps started to break into song as they guzzled down booze, celebrating the slayer's death.

"Slish Slosh! The slayer is dead. Which slayer? The vampire layer!" The largest of the three Hell's Angel wannabes brayed, slapping an arm around his friend.

A vampire that was still very much a fledgling, laughed and joined in, "Slish Slosh! The vampire slayer is dead."

The song dripped over Spike's skin like holy water. He got up from his barstool debating about which one to take out first, when Willy got in front of him. "Hey, Spike, my favorite costumer. Whatever you're about to do... don't. I really don't wanna remodel this place again. So sit back, have a drink on the house and let it go. Okay?"

For a second Spike thought about doing just that but then the third fledgling started caterwauling.

"Wake up - sleepy head, rub your eyes, get out of bed.

Wake up, the vampire layer is dead. She's gone where the old whores go,

Below - below - below. Yo-ho, let's open up and sing and ring the bells out.

Slish Slosh' the merry-oh, sing it high, sing it low."

Chuckling darkly Mr. Hell's Angel sang over him.

"Let them know

The Vampire Layer is dead!"

Spike snapped, pushing passed Willy, heading straight for Mr. Hell's Angel. He slammed him into the bar, making the wooden surface split in half with a sickening crack. Coolly Spike jammed a piece of wood in Mr. Hell's Angel's heart while the other two scattered. The vampire turned to dust right before Spike was tossed out of Willy's by a large fyarl demon. Dusting himself off, Spike made to stumble back to his old crypt when a slow sardonic clap stopped him in his tracks. He whirled around to see a short man in a fedora looking smug as he sized Spike up. "That feel good?" the man asked.

Spike glared, "Who the bloody hell are you?"

The man smiled jovially, "Whistler and you're in the wrong place."

Spike groaned as he slumped against a wall, lighting a cigarette, "Whistler... that name sounds familiar. You work for the bloody Powers, right?"

Whistler nodded, "That I do, William."

"Haven't been William in a while. " Spike puffed out a long ribbon of smoke.

Whistler smirked, "Well, you're not Spike anymore. Or the Slayer of slayers" He thought for a moment, drumming a finger on his chin. "How about I just call you Will? And you're still in the wrong place."

Spike huffed, "You're wrong on all accounts, mate. The only one in the wrong place here is you and I got the black hat to prove it."

Whistler rolled his eyes, "As a rule, black hats don't play hide the sausage with the slayer."

Spike grumbled, "Wanna rephrase that before your head starts missin' your shoulders?"

Whistler's sighed, "And they don't go around defending the slayer's honor."

Spike wrapped his hand around Whistler's throat slamming him against the wall. "Wanna know what white hats don't do? They don't go around killin' PTB agents like yourself. Now, mind telling me why you're here before I show you how much I'm not a white hat?"

"If you want to be a pain in the ass, fine. Let's go for a trip." Whistler teleported Spike to the desert leaving him both alone and confused.

"Bloody hell. I'm going to kill that bugger whenever I find him again." The night was thick and hung over the desert like a blanket. Spike was lost in an endless sea of sand and stars. Not sure of his next move, he inhaled deep attempting to catch a scent that would lead him back to the highway and to a cheap motel. Only there was none. No car noises could be heard and no smell of gasoline. "Yes, let's leave the flammable vampire in the desert to fry." He started to walk until he caught the scent of something intoxicating. With every step he grew closer to the source, the fuzzier his head got. His demon fought to the surface eager to find the all too familiar smell. Somewhere in the back of his head he realized that this must be where the watcher and the kids had dropped the slayer off to wait for her champion. Slayer... Only different... spicier... more smoky... less sweet. Soon his feet were stumbling over each other as he moved through a valley of rocks and caves, his amber eyes scanning the shadows for any sign of movement. As he neared, he found the slayer wriggling in chains attached to a rather large rock, her small delicate feet dangling inches off the ground. Spike approached her, unable to stop his feet if he tried. He slowly scanned the area for any sign of Angel. He's probably shagged her and left like the magnificent poof he is. Now, where's the bloody pillock? Yet there was no sign of him. His scent didn't linger in the air and there was no familiar tingle that screamed his family was near. Not sure what would happen next, Spike stepped towards her inhaling the sweet scent of virgin's blood coating the slayer's already mouthwatering smell. Say what you will about demon girl. She's not wrong about soddin blood rituals. The demon demanded to ravish her on the spot. To lick every crust of blood off her as he impaled her on his prick.

A husky moan from her kissable lips made his cock leap to attention. Eyes normally green had changed to quick silver and stared at him with need that made Spike's demon growl in response. However, the part of him that was still human was very much in control. He denied his wants, certain that if all his borrowed blood wasn't rushing south he would remember why he wasn't supposed to be here. Once again Spike looked for Angel but he was nowhere to be found. Drawn to the clang of chains and low wanting moans his feet dragged him over to her until he was close enough to touch and taste. She smells bloody brilliant, all sex, sunshine and flames pulsing underneath soft skin. Fuck... I need her wet and willing underneath me or on top of me. Fuck... or anyway she would have me. Need her right now.

He swallowed down his lust, "Hung up here all defenseless without a stitch on, covered in blood; why don't the Powers ask somethin big and nasty to eat her?"

Buffy squirmed temptingly on the rock, trying to escape her bindings. "Help me." She breathed out like a hot breeze making his blood boil.

Blue eyes ogled her small breast and the soft peach of her pussy. He leered, "That all depends, will I get somethin in return?" He couldn't stop himself from touching her, letting one hand rest on her hip while the other traveled up to the iron chains around her wrist. Soon he ground his jean covered cock into her pelvis.

She purred, "Help me." Buffy opened her legs, letting them wrap around him. She was pressed against him, her chest heaving while his face was eye level to her breast.

Whatever small amount of restraint he had was gone. "Right then... let's get those pesky chains off." He buries his face in the small mounds of her breast, sucking on a rosebud nipple while his hand followed the tangle of chains to a heavy lock. In one quick motion Spike broke the lock. Now free, Buffy propelled them backwards, sending them falling to the ground with a thump. "Yep, this is more like it." Spike grumbled before attempting to toss her off. She wasn't as easy to get off him as he thought.

Her hands busied themselves with removing his shirt while fluttering kisses rolled over him. She relished the cold skin underneath her hands moving them lower over taunt muscles. "Cold," she moaned between kisses that could make a dead man's heart race.

"Slayer," Spike gasped as her hands dived beneath his jeans to rub his large cock. Suddenly his jeans became cumbersome prison that he needed to be released from the more her hands teased him. It wasn't long before they were off and her mouth was around his shaft, her tongue teasing the head and lapping up his precum. "Slayer... not yet. God I wanna feel you." He pulled her mouth away, forcing his cock inside her with a violent thrust. He hissed as her pussy clinched around him. Her skin was like lava but Spike couldn't help but touch it. "Buffy."

"Never stop touching me." Buffy let out little moans as he plunged deeper inside her. "So close." She flipped Spike onto his back.

The two lovers never broke apart as she rode him hard. Spike groaned as Buffy writhed on top him, milking him with that tight quim of hers. Without thinking he vamped out. The monster wanted a taste of the slayer and Spike couldn't push it down anymore.

Buffy sensed what he wanted. On a primal level she needed it. Needed to feel his fangs tear apart her flesh and feel him taking her life force. She whispered in his ear, "Take it."

All Spike's demon could do was think of the taste of sweet slayer blood running down his throat. William spoke to Spike to not let the demon control him, "Oh god, please... I might never stop." Buffy started to suck on his neck before biting in to taste his blood.

Spike lost it, the monster in him reared its head and tore into her soft milky neck drinking the sweet blood as Buffy started to come. "You taste like... living flame." Spike gasped out as he became lost in the taste of her blood and the smell of her arousal. "Mine," he hissed. His cock burst inside her filling her completely.

She came with him moaning out a weak, "Yours."

With that declaration the man in Spike regained control allowing his fangs to slip out of her neck as his human face replaced the monster's that had been there moments before. He wanted to hold her longer but she still felt like she was on fire. "Sun's coming up." Spike whispered holding his lover.

Sleepily Buffy dragged him to the cave. In the damp darkness in there the couple made love a few more times until they fell asleep in each other's arms. As the sun crawled through the sky the power of the dragon's heart lost its pull. Buffy was back to herself before nightfall. Though at first she was relieved to find the long psychosis of the last two days had ebbed from her psyche, the discovery that her neck ached with fresh bite marks and that the taste of blood still lingered on her tongue filled her with a new panic. Buffy wretched herself from Spike's grasp feeling a growing sense of unease. Suddenly the implications of last night hit her like a chaos demon. She pulled Spike up by his neck with ease, shoving him into the wall, barely registering that her strength was back and the ritual was a success. She stared into blue eyes that screamed both love and shock. Emotions that were not her own made her feel like she was wearing someone else's clothes. Only they were not just anyone else's clothes she mused, they were Spike's. "Oh god no… you shouldn't be here." His hurt stabbed through her, making guilt nag at her. Still panicked, she pushed down any softness and shouted, "WHY ARE YOU HERE?"

The moment Spike fully pulled himself together he realized what was going on. I claimed her. Bloody hell she's going to kill me. He felt a growing sense of panic somewhere in his chest, only it wasn't his. Knowing it belonged to the slayer he put his bravado on, letting her press him to the cave wall. He teased, "Hey, look at that, the super girl act is back. Want another go to celebrate?" Spike leered as he snaked his hands around her heart shaped rear.

Buffy felt her breath leave her body, "Oh. God. This is serious, Spike. You claimed me... Oh god... that might have messed up this stupid ritual." She dropped him, needing to walk away before she gave into his desire for another round. "That claimy thing, it could've given me strength, right?"

"No. It makes you live as long as me and I think it stops you from aging but it doesn't give you strength." Spike leaned against the cave wall watching Buffy pace wildly much like a jungle cat unable to hunt. "I don't think the claim screwed with the ritual." Truthfully he hadn't paid close attention to Giles' explanations of the whys or hows of the ritual. All he knew was it involved the woman he love having sex with his grandsire so the Powers could use them to make little baby slayers to rebuild the line with. Like human breeding dogs. Bastards. Then realization punched him in the gut. Whistler... that pillock…. Oh bloody hell. I'm going to kill him. He really needed a cigarette. Buggering hell. How in the hell did I get wrapped up into this?

She looked at him with new horror, "Oh god, now you're freaking. Spike, only one of us is allowed to freak at a time. And currently I have first dibs on the freakage." She glared daggers at him, "WHY ARE YOU EVEN HERE?"

Spike chuckled with millions of things popping through his head but only one was worth mentioning. Angel was not the guy. "Don't rightly know. That Whistler chap popped me here." He studied her slender form not looking at her as anything but Buffy. A woman who in a few short months would be having his child. That one fact made him fall more in love with her.

She was back to her frantic pacing. That won't do. He stopped her by grabbing her forearms, "Breathe, luv. It's okay." He pulled her closer kissing her, "You got your powers back and new slayers are on the way. You should be relaxing." A devilish hand rolled down her arm sneaking down to her inner thigh. "Let's... Celebrate." He let his finger brush the lips of her quim earning him a moan.

Buffy stomped her foot, "I need to focus. You doing the whole sexy vampire thing isn't helping."

He smiled, "So you find me sexy, do you?" He kissed the column of her neck dipping his long fingers into her opening while his thumb toyed with her clit.

Buffy rolled her eyes, "God I shouldn't have inflated your ego."

Spike laughed, "Just say it you want my hot body."

Buffy sighed pushing him away with a humph, "You're a pig, Spike. I have a problem here. The ritual was supposed to create a new slayer line and we don't know if it worked or not. Angel—"

All of Spike's good humor vanished from him at the mention of the other vampire's name. He was not going to live in his grandsire's shadow anymore, "Not here and not coming. Like it or not I'm the guy that the PTB chose. And it's we now."

She looked at him confused, certain that he would turn tail and run at the opportunity to get out of this mess, "We?"

He cocked his head to the side, "Yeah, slayer, we. If you think for one moment I'm just-"

She didn't let him start on the rant, "Don't. Just listen for a second. I'm not upset with you for being here. I'm actually a little happy about that part. Spike, I love you. I just never figured you for the domestic type. I thought… You might not wanna be involved. And Angel and I had a plan. He was supposed to come here and once we knew that the ritual worked, we were going to go back to Sunnydale."

Spike nodded, "Right. I never leave the ones I love. I didn't leave Dru and I am bloody well not leaving you. For god sakes, woman, I claimed you. And yes, the whole white picket fence thing wasn't part of my unlife's mission but when I was human I wanted them. So yeah I'm in." He smirked," And that plan with Angel is bloody terrible. One- it involves Angel instantly making it a no go. Two- involves you going back to Sunnyhell. Too many people know us there. It makes your fake death moot. And then you're back to square one with the Council of Wankers and the sodding CDSA. And I'll be damned if I'll either them get their hands on my girls."

Buffy huffed, "Fine, what do we do next? We can't stay here. I don't do the whole roughing it thing."

"Simple, we stay here until nightfall and make sure the ritual worked. Then we get the hell out of the country, keep a low profile in the South of Spain, and raise our kid. Let Angel handle the Hellmouth for a few years."

She looked at him sadly, "I am the slayer, Spike. I can't just leave the Hellmouth and stop fighting evil." More practically she added, "Because of that word will spread that I'm live. At least in Sunnydale there's friends and family to help us."

Reluctantly he sighed, "Fine. You're right. But we can't go back to Sunnydale. You might as well put a target on your back and say, 'please kidnap me and kill me and my unborn daughter'."

She knew he was right. "Okay here's what we do. We don't leave the country. We keep a low profile in another part of the state. That way when there's trouble we'll be able to lend a hand if needed. And if we need help we'll get to the others fast." She closed the distanced between them resting a warm hand over the place his heart should have been beating.

He kissed her tenderly, "I'm in. But no sacrificing yourself for the greater good. Be selfish for a little while, alright? Our kid needs a mum."

Fin

Chapter End Notes:

Okay so there is the last chapter but no worries there is an Epilogue.

As always big thanks to Whisperrr for editing.

Please read and review


	22. Fairwell

Fairwell

Epilogue

A file sat unopened in front of Hank, on the round stone table in the cellar of the vineyard. He didn't need to open the simple manila file folder to know what it said. Seven months had come and gone and the slayer had given birth to two baby girls somewhere in San Francisco. She had won against all odds. She had been powerless and cornered in the Hellmouth with all sorts of beasties longing to kill her for glory. Those vigilantes had failed. The assassins the CDSA hired had failed. Now both Lore, the new head of the organization, and Hank had run out of options, thereby forcing the pair to meet in the vineyard once again.

Lore paced in circles wearing a tread in the warped wooden floor boards. His partner stifled his laughter as Lore ranted in his native tongue. A noise that Hank couldn't help but compare to a tin can going down a garbage disposal. Lore growled at the other man's amusement. Hank rolled his eyes at his partner, "This isn't working, perhaps Ella might be right."

Lore still refused to admit defeat. The last slayer was destined to be an offering to his gods. With the delusion and passion only reserved for crazed zealots, Lore howled, "No! That half-blood whore is WRONG. The slayer hasn't actually been killing our warriors. It's all FAKE."

Hank let sarcasm drip from his lips that seemed to go over Lore's head, "Yes, you must be right. After all, the slayer doesn't have a prayer of a chance killing anything." His voice became sugary sweet before he roared, "Oh wait, I almost forgot something... let me think... oh yeah... all those FUCKING DEAD ASSASSINS we wasted money on!" Regaining his wits, Hank pretended to think aloud, "We need to make an alliance with the slayer before things get back to normal."

Yellowish saliva dripping from Lore's mouth splashed onto Hank as he spoke. "For one, the slayer is not killing our warriors. No, it's those two parasites…. Spike... and that one... that just moved back last month... I think his name is... Angel. And secondly, we both know the ritual is impossible to perform."

Hank asked for some patience. "It isn't and she has. There are reports of a man and a woman matching both Buffy's and Spike's descriptions going to a hospital last Tuesday and coming back out with two baby girls. Not only that but the mad seer from the Aurelius clan had already predicted the birth and has gone up there to pay her respects along with a few of the slayer's closest allies. If the CDSA does not want to be left in the dust I firmly suggest you contact the other members and send a liaison to pay tribute to the happy new parents. " The question sat heavy in the room.

Lore refused to acknowledge it. "NO! You, it's you! You parasite... you're the reason why we are failing. YOU'RE A SPY FOR-"

Lore hadn't the time to finish his statement. A spark followed by a hiss ignited the slap of blue muscles and curved teeth in a blaze of flames and smoke. A metallic sort of scream crawled from the remains of Lore before he was turned into ashes.

Hank slumped in his chair as three new occupants entered. Willow and Giles were the first to appear, followed by a balding man with a round face and pot belly that could only be Quentin Travers. Giles stared at the ashes before fixing his gaze to Hank.

Hank studied the two watchers, "I don't see it. How do you think you're going to get away with this? The Families won't be pleased. Not to mention the old gods... immortals, they do love their old laws."

Quentin replied, "There was no blood spilled. No laws were broken. As for the Families, my dear Ella Strange has taken over control before my plane ever touched down."

Hank let out a dark laugh, "The subtle distinction makes no difference to the old ones. Blood or not, you wanted him dead and he died on the sanctuary grounds. Doesn't matter if you didn't pull the trigger." He looked at Willow with knowing smirk. She suddenly paled like she had just realized the enormity of her actions. "That's right little girl. You won't walk away from this unmarred. Now, someone mind filling why you are all here?"

Giles explained with a cold steal to his voice, "We're cleaning house."

Hank nodded, "You can't kill me, you know. Physically impossible. You'll need something a little more powerful than a newbie witch."

Quentin stepped in, "You're right, but we're not here to kill you."

Willow threw a glass bottle at Hank and started to chant with Giles. "I banish the dark thy back to darkness. Back to the seventh hell."

Hank laughed as Willow's eyes turned black and the magic took hold. "You don't think that's going to work, right?" Wind spiraled around Hank pulling on his coat. Soon he felt earth give away at his feet and the room shook. The inky blackness gripped his feet, pulled him and pulled down, down, down until it swallowed him completely.

Once he was gone, the room was back to normal. Only the trio remained. Breathless, Willow asked, "So who wants to tell Buffy we sent her dad to hell?" Her green eyes fixed on the spot he had been in moments ago.

A cry that was more effective than any alarm clock Buffy had ever owned sounded over the baby monitor. She snuggled into the man beside her, "Spike, Caroline is calling for her daddy." she pushed on his arm.

Spike cracked one blue eye open, "No, that's Roslyn, luv And she's calling for you." he pulled the blanket over his head as another cry was added to the monitor followed by the sound of a doorbell. Both parents groaned.

Shit." Spike moaned. "I'll get nappies and you get the door."

Buffy yawned, pulling herself out of bed and throwing on something that didn't make her look like she came from a casting call for the 'Night of the living dead' remake. She bounced down the stairs muttering about well-wishers, watchers, and delusional vampires keeping her up all night. With a huff she pulled open the door to see a UPS man on the other side with a bright pink gift box with a white ribbon. "Good morning, Mrs. Winters. Can you sign here for me?"

She looked at the too cheery young man and took the little pen. "Thank you and here you go." She signed the pad and took the box.

The door was shut as Spike came down the stairs and went to the kitchen. Buffy followed, placing the box on the kitchen island and pulling out a pair of scissors. Spike looked over to her as she opened the box before pulling a bag of blood from the fridge. "Don't tell me it's another soddin breast pump?"

She pulled out two blue and pink lion stuffed animals and a card that read. "Congrats, I hope you're a better parent than I was. Love, dad."

Just then the phone let out a loud ring. Buffy put the note back in the box and went to answer it. "Hello?... Yes… I understand…. Thank you."

Spike, sensing the change in her heartbeat, rushed to her side. He freed the receiver from her grasp and lifted it to his own year only to hear a free dial tone. Gently, he grabbed her by the arm. Her motionlessness and silence were unsettling.

"Luv, what's going on? Who called? What's happened?" His tone was anxious.

A single tear rolled down her cheek followed by a choked laughter. Suddenly she spun around and hugged the vampire she loved as tightly as possible. Uncertainly, he put his arms around her.

"Buffy, will you, for the love of all that's evil, tell me what is happening?"

She straightened, so she could look him in the eyes, but kept her hands on his shoulders. One of the brightest smiles Spike had ever seen shone on her face and seemed to light up the whole room.

"We can finally go home."

Chapter End Notes:

For all of those who sat down and read this story Thank you. For all of you who actually commented and liked it all your words of encouragement helped me get through the next chapter so extra big thanks to y'all. Now for a special thanks to my beta Whisperrr who help edit and through in few lines when my words were too vague. Without her my story would be unreadable.


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